Irving Penn Show Curated by Tom Pecheux ‘Edge of Beauty’ Exhibition at Thaddaeus Ropac in Paris

Tom Pecheux’s selection of Irving Penn photographs invites gallery-goers to ponder the meaning of beauty in a new exhibition poised to run at the Thaddaeus Ropac gallery in Paris. Pecheux, a celebrity makeup artist who is the global beauty director for YSL Beauty, cherrypicked images for the show, titled Irving Penn —Edge of Beauty.

The collaborative exhibit co-created with Pace Gallery marks Pecheux’s curatorial debut. But he’s no stranger to art of all kinds, always running to galleries and museums whenever there is some down time. 'I love photography,' said Pecheux, who worked with the late Penn on numerous occasions. For the Edge of Beauty show, Pecheux delved into the photographer’s archives in New York. 'I like the way Mr. Penn was creating images twisting beauty,' he said. 

Part of Penn’s brilliance was his ability to capture the dark underbelly of beauty in sparse compositions. Pecheux cited as an example the image appearing on the exhibit’s invitation. Called Protractor Face, the black-and-white print from1994 shows a model’s face adorned with translucent measurement tools. It makes one ponder the notion of perfect beauty. (...)

Another image is Bee on Lips from 1995 that zooms in on a bee atop a
models’ brightly lipsticked mouth. Originally it ran alongside an editorial about collagen injections, and plays on the expression “bee-stung lips.”(...)

“Irving Penn — Edge of Beauty” runs through July 13 at Thaddaeus
Ropac in Paris’ third arrondissement.