Before Instagram filters and paparazzi drones, the visual grammar of fame was written largely by women working the shutter — and rarely getting the credit. A new exhibition sets out to correct that oversight, tracing a hundred years of stardom through the eyes of the female photographers who shaped it.
Stardust: 100 Years of Stage, Screen and Celebrity runs from September 11 through November 20 at Hundred Heroines in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire — the only U.K.-based charity dedicated to women in photography. Entry is free, and the show doubles as the inaugural exhibition in the organisation’s new, larger gallery and museum space.
The lineup spans the full arc of twentieth-century celebrity. Early screen icons like Vivien Leigh and Marlene Dietrich share wall space with contemporary portraits of Kate Moss and Amy Winehouse, the latter shot by renowned portraitist Jillian Edelstein, the exhibition’s featured artist. Edelstein’s contributions also include studies of Helena Bonham Carter, Yoko Ono, Vivienne Westwood and Sandra Oh.
Perhaps the most intriguing draw for archive hunters: a set of photographs of Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin drawn from the Elisabeth Buchmeyer Lewis archive, some being shown publicly for the first time. For anyone who has ever wondered what lurks in the storage boxes of photographic history, these are exactly the kind of previously unseen frames that justify a trip.
The framing here is deliberately human rather than glossy. “My portraits included here reflect the humanity behind the mask of celebrity, the person behind the persona,” Edelstein says. “We see them as more than the fame, more than the hype of modern-day fame. They become real and infinitely more moving as a result.”
For Edelstein, the invitation carried real weight. “When Hundred Heroines approached me to take part, saying yes was an easy decision,” she says. “Seeing my own work exhibited alongside that of Lallie Charles, Dorothy Wilding, and Madame D’Ora has been an honor.” Those three names are a reminder that women were operating professional portrait studios long before the industry got around to acknowledging them.
Curator and founder Del Barrett sees the show as a statement of intent for the new premises. “This is the perfect opening exhibition for our new gallery. It’s a celebration of the remarkable women who photographed the famous faces of the twentieth century, and gives us the chance to share some of the hidden gems in our archive,” she says. “The move marks an exciting new chapter for Hundred Heroines.”
It is a rare chance to study a century of iconic faces while keeping the focus where it belongs — on the photographers who made those faces immortal.
