"Miss Beehayving" by Albert Watson

BREAUNNA (FRIDGE) by Albert Watson, 24 x 20", 60 x 48"

BREAUNNA (BED) by Albert Watson, 24 x 20", 60 x 48"

BREAUNNA IN CAT MASK by Albert Watson, 20" x 24", 60 x 48"

All Digital c print photograph, source: guyhepner.com

Miss Beehayving, Hamiltons Gallery London, 13 February - 15 March 2008

In his first UK solo gallery exhibition, Scottish-born photographer Albert Watson presents twelve new photographs from his latest body of work, Shot in Vegas. This new work departs from Watson's iconic portraiture initiated at the time of his arrival in America in 1970 and continued for the ensuing two decades. Concentrating on a single dominatrix and burlesque performer, Breaunna, with whom he worked repeatedly over two years, these images form a unique and essential part of the Shot in Vegas series, Watson's forthcoming book project. He met her at a Rock-A-Billy Convention in 2000 and over the years she became his muse, posing for him numerous times.

"When you come from a small town in Scotland, and years later you end up with a camera in Las Vegas, it's truly like being in another galaxy. And meeting somebody like Breaunna was inspiring. She lives in an exotic, erotic world, and that's what fascinated me." Albert Watson.

Watson described Breaunna, whose online moniker is Miss Beehayving, as having a chameleon-like quality. He managed to capture a different facial expression in each photograph, depicting the world both literally and figuratively through her eyes and the places she worked. His use of light creates a meditative atmosphere, drawing the viewer into the image whilst simultaneously demanding a reverent distance.

Watson studied graphic design at The Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, Dundee; and film and television at The Royal College of Art, London. He has exhibited internationally in solo shows at The Museum of Modern Art, Milan; Kunst Haus Wien, Vienna; City Art Centre, Edinburgh and FotoMuseum, Antwerp and group shows at The National Portrait Gallery, London; Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow and The International Centre of Photography, New York. His photographs are included in the permanent collections at The National Portrait Gallery and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. A retrospective of his work was published by Phaidon in November 2007.