Anton BRUEHL
Australia 1900 – United States of America 1982
United States from 1919

Portrait of Charles Laughton 1933
gelatin silver photograph
Recto, signed in pencil on support, lower right, 'Anton Bruehl'.
image 43.6 (h) x 35.8 (w) cm
Gift of American Friends of the National Gallery of Australia, Inc., New York, NY, USA, made possible with the generous support of Anton Bruehl Jr, 2006.
National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
NGA 2006.161

Celebrity images, like this one of movie star Charles Laughton, were a necessary part of the vocabulary of a photographer working for the big picture magazines of the day. Although Condé Nast, owner of magazines such as Vogue and Vanity Fair, did not particularly admire Bruehl’s portrait work – and he was up against some truly spectacularly accomplished and stylish portrait photographers like Edward Steichen and Cecil Beaton – Bruehl was able to produce penetrating and clever portrayals.

Although Laughton (1899–1962) is best remembered as one of the leading interpreters of costume and historical drama parts, here Bruehl leaves him dressed simply in contemporary dress, to create a quiet and introspective portrait, moodily lit. The result is an insightful portrait that hints perhaps at the complexities of Laughton’s personality.