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Art Mon Mar 01 2010
William Eggleston at The Art Institute
"Does anyone have a cigarette?! Does anyone have a cigarette for William Eggleston?!!," an assistant yelled to the masses of people waiting for Mr. Eggleston to sign their books. People desperately shot their hands up, hoping to give the icon a smoke. Eggleston, pioneer of color photography, was on hand at The Art Institute's Modern Wing on Saturday for the opening of his retrospective, Democratic Camera, Photographs and Video, 1961-2008.
The show is huge, exhibiting his early black and white photos, every image from William Eggleston's Guide, video, and paraphernalia from commercial projects like the album cover for Memphis band, Big Star. Eggleston is a legend. His imprint on art, photography, and American culture is so large, this enormous retrospective still doesn't do it justice. Although I didn't have a cigarette to give him, standing 15 feet from him felt pretty cool. Democratic Photos closes May 23, 2010.