Behind The Lens.. Brian Aris
, by Behind The Gallery, 12 min reading time
Behind the lens with Brian Aris: The photographer who went from Vietnam's frontlines to Buckingham Palace, shooting Band Aid, Bowie, George Michael and five decades of music icons.
We are thrilled to introduce Brian Aris, one of Britain's most versatile and celebrated photographers, whose career spans nine years on the frontlines of conflict photography to five decades in the studio with rock royalty, actual royalty, and everyone in between. A frontline photojournalist who covered the Troubles in Northern Ireland, the civil war in Lebanon, famine in Africa and the final days of Saigon, Brian pivoted entirely after Vietnam, opening a London studio to photograph the stars of the punk, glam and new wave eras. Commissioned by Bob Geldof to shoot the original Band Aid line-up in 1983, he went on to photograph every Band Aid recording since, alongside official portraits for The Queen's 70th birthday and Golden Wedding Anniversary, and a string of celebrity weddings from David Bowie and Iman to David and Victoria Beckham. His archive is one of the largest individual collections in the UK. Brian Aris prints are now available through Behind The Gallery.
From Saigon to the Studio
You spent nine years as a frontline photojournalist — Northern Ireland, Vietnam, the famine in Africa, before switching to studio and music work. What was the actual moment that made you walk away from conflict photography?
I returned from Vietnam two days before Saigon fell, with good images of the final evacuation across the Delta, but by the time the films were processed it appeared that interest in the war had evaporated, particularly in the USA. That left me very disillusioned, and I took a break and spent some time renovating a cottage I had purchased in southern England. During that time I was approached by various PR's and picture desks to see if I was interested in other work, including photographing models and new pop stars, and I thought, why not! I always believed it would be short-term, until I felt ready to go back to reportage, but events overtook me. The music business in the UK exploded, and suddenly I was being asked to photograph new bands, including a session with a new artist from New York. That session was with Debbie Harry from Blondie, and I loved it. That persuaded me to continue in the studio, and I never went back to war zones and famines until I returned to Ethiopia with Bob Geldof to photograph the work of Band Aid.
"That session was with Debbie Harry from Blondie, and I loved it. That persuaded me to continue in the studio."
Wham, Jagger, and a Very Busy Decade
You photographed everyone from Blondie and The Clash to the Spice Girls, a span that covers punk, glam, boy bands and girl power. Is there one shoot from that run that still surprises you when you look back at it?
When I look back at the 80s, the thing that surprises me most, as I go through my Polaroid diaries, is just how busy I was. For example, on the day I shot the first images with Wham, my diary shows I was booked at 10am with Billy Joel, followed by a four-hour solo session with Mick Jagger. George and Andrew then arrived at 6pm for their session. That was not unusual.
"I was booked at 10am with Billy Joel, followed by a four-hour solo session with Mick Jagger. George and Andrew then arrived at 6pm. That was not unusual."
Band Aid
You've shot the official Band Aid line-up since 1983, all the way through to Band Aid 30 in 2014. What's different about photographing that group now versus the original session?
Band Aid was unique, the first time so many of the artists had met each other. I had photographed most of them by that time, and my friend Paula Yates had interviewed most of them. As Paula said to me as we waited to see who would turn up for the recording: "You do realise we know all the artists Bob has asked, but most of them don't know each other. They haven't met. Going to be interesting to see how they get along." Never a truer sentence. The problem we had was getting the group together and stopping them talking long enough to look at my camera. Paula did that by whistling at them and shouting out "Look at the camera." I think we shot around ten frames, of which three had the majority looking at me - they went straight back to their conversations. Curiosity about their rivals obviously got the better of them. By the time Live Aid and the other fundraisers came along, the novelty was no longer there. Band Aid truly opened the doors to artists working together and ditching rivalries to raise awareness and funds for worthy causes — a real first.
"You do realise we know all the artists Bob has asked, but most of them don't know each other. Going to be interesting to see how they get along." — Paula Yates
Buckingham Palace
You photographed the Queen's official portraits for her 70th birthday and later her Golden Wedding Anniversary, sittings that carry a lot more protocol than a rock star shoot. What's the actual brief for a portrait like that, and how much room do you get to make it your own?
The only time I have been nervous before a session of any kind was the first time working with Her Majesty the Queen. Being alone in a drawing room at Buckingham Palace with the lady I had grown up regarding as our Queen, and being restricted by protocol on what could be said, was a challenge to say the least. But in trying to calm myself down I played around with the camera, which was on a tripod, and managed to unlock it. The camera fell forward and my assistant Patrick caught it and pushed it back to me, saying, "You shouldn't be doing that, Mr Aris," at which point Her Majesty - a keen photographer herself, fell about laughing. Thankfully my reportage training kicked in and I managed to fire off three shots, one of which is still one of my favourite images from quite a long career. All the tension disappeared, and I actually ended up enjoying the shoot.
The important thing to remember is how important preparation is. By the time the subject arrives, the camera and lighting should be incidental, allowing all the concentration to be on producing relaxed images. Protocol on royal photography has in the past been trying for me. I firmly believe in speaking at length to the subject before, during and after sessions, and that has been an important factor in making those shoots both enjoyable and successful. I reverted to giving instructions and direction, as I always do in my work, and that got me through. Actually, when I look back, it was great fun to ask Her Majesty, or Lady Thatcher, or indeed Rupert Murdoch, to put their chin up and give me a "small smile."
"You shouldn't be doing that, Mr Aris" — at which point Her Majesty fell about laughing.
Weddings
You've shot a run of high-profile weddings, Bowie and Iman, Sting and Trudie Styler, David and Victoria Beckham. Weddings are one-take, no-do-over events. How do you prepare for that compared to a studio session where you can reshoot?
I believe shooting weddings should be fun and all-inclusive. Once again, preparation is very important, but involving everyone — and importantly Mum and Dad and Grandma and Granddad, is key. Celebrity weddings are no different. My attitude was to have fun with all the participants and certainly never worry about a reshoot. I guess my reportage experience helped a lot, you don't think about reshooting in those circumstances.
George Michael
You've since published a retrospective book on George Michael. Is there a specific session that changed how you photographed him afterward?
I photographed George Michael over a thirty-year period, starting with Wham and moving through a period where I watched George go from being a teenager to a man. The changes were dramatic, as was the way his music developed, until finally he became such a major force in music. I feel really privileged that George trusted me and gave me so many opportunities to photograph him in different circumstances. I particularly enjoyed working with him in St Tropez, where he was on holiday with friends, that was a time when he seemed to be at his happiest and the most relaxed I ever saw him.
The book has been very successful and is on its reprint, and I have been signing books for fans at various exhibitions we have put on across the UK over the past three months. That has really been a revelation, George's fans have been wonderful to meet. They know far more about their idol than me, and are truly dedicated to him, and they have come from all over the world, including two ladies from Australia who I spent some time with at our show in London. That has made the whole experience of producing Celebrating George so worthwhile, and I'm delighted the book has been so well received. Losing George at such an early age is truly tragic.
"I watched George go from being a teenager to a man — and I feel really privileged he trusted me with so many different sides of him."
David Bowie
Your Bowie archive runs from 1985 to 2000. Bowie was famous for controlling his own image relentlessly. Was he someone who directed the shoot, or did he let you find the picture?
I never worked with David Bowie through the early years, I never met him during the Aladdin Sane period. We first met at Sir Bob Geldof's wedding, and the man I was introduced to there was sophisticated and a delight to speak to. That meeting led to me photographing David over many years, and even having him ask me to photograph his wedding to Iman in Italy. David was a true artist, brimming over with ideas, and one of the most stylish individuals I have met. We worked together on producing his images, and I cannot remember a single occasion when he tried to direct a shot. When he trusted you, it was a great compliment, and I loved every moment working with him.
A moment I will always treasure took place in his apartment in New York. I was shooting David and Iman with their newborn baby, Alex, and was working on film before we moved over to digital. Late in the afternoon I shot some solo pictures with Iman, and David disappeared for half an hour. When we wrapped, and as I was about to leave, David gave me a print — it was signed to me, and was of me. Somehow he had snapped a shot of me laughing and had made a print with some effects overlaid on the colour shot, making it truly unique. I was amazed, but looking back, I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised, David was always way ahead in technology, and had probably been using a digital camera years before I switched away from film.
"I cannot remember a single occasion when he tried to direct a shot. When he trusted you, it was a great compliment."
The Archive
Your archive is one of the largest individual collections in the UK. Now that you're publishing retrospective books, has going back through decades of your own negatives changed how you see any of these photographs?
Going back through the archives to make selections for my books has been a very interesting experience. I am constantly surprised by how ruthless I was at editing sessions, as a consequence, I am always finding images that I feel happy with but rejected in the past. I was very single-minded about finding precisely the one image that pleased me. Now I find myself asking why I rejected so many interesting images. But that has made the task of putting together my books so much easier.
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