Photograph by Man Ray goes on display in Falmouth (From Falmouth Packet)

Photograph by Man Ray goes on display in Falmouth

3:20pm Friday 12th October 2012 in News By Greg Fountain, Reporter/Photographer

A portrait of renowned French actress Catherine Deneuve, taken by famous surrealist and modernist Man Ray, was unveiled at Falmouth Art Gallery this week.

The picture first arrived in the gallery’s collection in 2010 as part of an archive of images from the photographer Ian Stern. However curators were unable to confirm its true identity until it was confirmed by the estate of Man Ray, who died in 1976.

Gallery staff have long suspected it to be a Man Ray and director Louise Connell said: “Those are her earrings and she’s in Man Ray’s studio – all the clues are there.”

The photograph shows actress Catherine Deneuve in a relaxed pose while sat in the artist’s Parisian studio in 1966 and is believed to have been bought in a junk shop by Mr Stern prior to his death in 1978. It is thought to be one of only three from the shoot not in private collections and was featured on the front cover of The Times Magazine of June 16, 1968.

A description of the photograph, included in an article title “The Mysterious Art of Catherin Deneuve” reads: “Catherine was photographed for the Sunday Times Magazine on a visit to the Paris studio of Man Ray, a pioneer of modern art. “He surrounded her with objects of his own making: a painted screen, a spiral paper mobile, gold-plated ear-rings echoing the spiral motif, a chess-board, six carpenter's planes, a mirror disguised as a book with the title 'Levres d'Or'.”

The portrait will be on display in Falmouth Art Gallery until mid November. The gallery is open Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm and admission is free. For more information contact the gallery on 01326 313863 or email the gallery at collections@falmouthartgallery.com.