In Print
Flying the Concorde with Christopher Makos
MANDATORY
On March 2, 1969, the Concorde first took flight, going twice the speed of sound at Mach 2.04, and cruising eight miles above the Earth, on the edge of the atmosphere. It officially entered commercial service in 1976, coming to define the true jet set: a group of people wealthy enough to afford the then-$12,000 round-trip tickets ($22,450 today).
20 March 2022
WARHOL MODELING PORTFOLIO MAKOS
New York, NY (October 5, 2021) – Andy Warhol is one of the most famous American artists of our time.
Though he is most known for his distinctive pop art style, (think Campbell’s soup can, or Marilyn Monroe’s technicolor face repeated in a grid), few know about his fascinating early career as a model.
In his new book, Andy Modeling Portfolio Makos (March 29, 2022), photographer Christopher Makos offers the public the first and only photographic portrait of Andy Warhol’s early modeling career.
Now a luminary in the world of photography himself, Makos offers an incisive photographic portrait of a previously unknown period in Warhol’s life as a model from the unique perspective of Warhol’s best friend and confidant. When Andy decided to try his hand at modeling, he needed a portfolio just like every other aspiring model. And this is the complete and only archive of Andy Warhol’s attempt to
present himself as a model to the commercial and artistic world.
16 December 2021
TURNING THE CAMERA ON ANDY WARHOL
KET MAG BRUSSELS
The current exhibition at Galerie Faider is Warhol by Christopher Makos.
Christopher Makos was a young, aspiring photographer when he moved to New York City in the early 1970s.
Makos describes his younger self as a gorgeous blond kid from Southern California, and he was soon attracting the attention of the gay men who were the movers and shakers of New York’s art world.
Makos was introduced to Andy Warhol at an exhibition of Warhol’s work at the Whitney Museum of American Art. From there, the gorgeous blond kid from Southern California embedded himself within Warhol’s inner-circle.
Throughout that period, Makos kept his camera busy – accumulating a wealth of images that capture iconic moments from this seminal period of pop art and celebrity culture.
02 March 2021
WARHOL BY MAKOS
COOL MAGAZINE
He was at the same time a witness and testimonial of the Pope of Pop Art . In front of his lens Andy Warhol found himself much more at ease than those of other photographers, for the simple reason that between Drella and Makos ( Christopher from Lowell , Massachusetts , born in 1948) there has always been trust , respect , lightness , joy , complicity . All this transpires from the photographic shots of the Warhol by Christopher Makos exhibition atGalerie Faider in Brussels , which act as an ideal counterbalance to the Warhol - The American Dream Factory exhibition , on the bill at the Musée de La Boverie in Liège until the end of February .
22 February 2021
Warhol by Makos
Galerie Faider presents Warhol by Christopher Makos, an exhibition echoing the exhibition “Warhol – The American dream factory” organized by Tempora at the La Boverie Museum in Liège.
22 February 2021
ONEMAN
Christopher Makos: The Greek photographer who invented the I By GIANNIS DIMITRELLOS
Some dreams dare to be imprinted with indelible colors in the film of life. Lou Reed sang 'Walk on the Wild Side', David Bowie (with John Lennon in the second vocals) sang 'Fame' in his most cynical and self-deprecating style, Andy Warhol defined postmodern aesthetics in a an artistic universe thirsting for upheaval. Next to Warhol was Greek-born photographer Christopher (Chris) Makos. On the occasion of his new 'Dirty' photo exhibition in New York, I invited him to a telephone conversation. Our conversation went beyond durations, seasons, nostalgia and stereotypes.
Take a walk on the wild side
It is eleven-thirty in the evening, a policeman could be at my door, ready to close instantly this surreal beautiful conversation that would follow. My anxiety was huge, I was sure that Chris Makos would talk to Harry Styles, to Mick Jagger, to some up-and-coming or 'veteran' of pop culture about his photos and he would hardly take the step to call Greece. Sorry, but finally… (phone ringtone).
Yes, it is Chris Makos, polite, shy and eager to talk. That's how our conversation started
24 October 2020
COLLECTOR DAILY
Christopher Makos, Dirty @Daniel Cooney By Loring Knoblauch
JTF (just the facts): A total of 40 photographic works, generally framed in white and matted, and hung against grey and white walls in the two room gallery space.
The exhibition includes:
19 gelatin silver prints, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980s, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1987, sized between roughly 4×8 and 20×16 inches (or the reverse)
1 gelatin silver print with pencil markings, 1981, sized 8×10 inches
3 gelatin silver print diptychs, 2020, sized 14×11 inches
4 sets of 4 stitched gelatin silver prints, undated, 1991, 1995, sized 20×16 inches
1 collage of 4 Polaroids, 1987, sized roughly 9×4 inches
1 gelatin silver print collage, 1977, sized 8×10 inches
1 silver oxide print, undated, sized 10×8 inches
10 Polaroid prints, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1986, 1993, sized roughly 4×3 or 4×4 inches
15 October 2020
MADE IN BED Sotheby's
Holly Fairgrieve in Conversation with Christopher Makos
Christopher Makos’s photographic archive of New York in the 70s and 80s is a window into the one of the most important periods of the city’s history, one marked by extraordinary creativity and prolific artistic output. Famously known as the dynamic best friend of Andy Warhol, Christopher Makos’s photos document his time in The Factory, socialising with the likes of Tennessee Williams, Keith Haring, John Lennon, Jean Michael Basquiat and Debbie Harry. His new exhibition, “Dirty”, at Daniel Cooney Fine Art, features his images of 20th century icons alongside his illicit photographs of male nudes. Despite the celebrity element to his work, Makos’s photos are vulnerable, intimate and reveal sides of his sitters that are little known. Here, MADE IN BED’s Creative Director, Holly Fairgrieve, has a phone call with Makos to discuss his exhibition “Dirty”, the culture of New York City, his friendship with Andy Warhol and the art world today.
14 October 2020
POZ
Why Make Dirty Art in a Pandemic? Warhol Photographer Christ By Trent Straube
Our Q&A with Makos covers two plagues, his current exhibition, Keith Haring, Debbie Harry, hot bods and more.
Photographer Christopher Makos has been an influential force in the art world for nearly five decades. He collaborated with his pal Andy Warhol, documented New York scenesters (notably for his two-page column in Interview magazine), published numerous books and continues to exhibit his work across the globe—he’s also involved in the upcoming Netflix docuseries about Warhol and he just released a 2,000-piece jigsaw puzzle for Art X Puzzles, which supports COVID-19 artists relief.
As illustrated by the selection of his work in Dirty, his current gallery show at Daniel Cooney Fine Art in Manhattan, Makos’s photography—even the images from the early 1980s—looks as contemporary as a refreshed Instagram feed.
12 October 2020
WONDERLUST
THE EXHIBITIONIST By Anna Phillips
Legendary photographer Christopher Makos’ show Dirty at New York City’s Daniel Cooney Gallery
Andy Warhol kissing John Lennon. Jean-Michel Basquiat hanging out at the Factory. A male crotch half-heartedly covered with denim shorts.
With present day New York City defined by social distance and sanitization, legendary photographer Christopher Makos’s exhibition Dirty offers an intimate glimpse into the city’s free-spirited past.
Curated by Daniel Cooney Fine Arts, Dirty showcases 40 vintage photographs, hand-sewn prints, Polaroids and contact sheets spanning Makos’s career. The exhibit offers a lens into the glamorous yet grungy 1970s and 80s art scene in New York City and around the world.
Makos captured warm moments between Andy Warhol, Keith Harring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Liza Minnelli, Iggy Pop and John Lennon, as well as photographing an array of provocative male nudes. An affectionate shot of Keith Harring and Juan Debose at the piers is presented alongside a close-up nude of a male gymnast.
04 October 2020
ADVOCATE
Christopher Makos Photographs Warhol, Minnelli, Haring, Basq
Reveling in the spirit of Freedom, innovation, and creativiity that has defined Makos's oeuvre for half a century, "Dirty" features photograp[hs of Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Debbie Harry, Patti Smith, Iggy Pop, Richard Hell Liza Minelli, and John Lennon alongside a swath of sumptous make nudes and figurative studies. This is in addition to original contact sheets, vintage Polaroids, silver oxide prints, gelatin silver prints and collages
18 September 2020
DIRTY
Daniel Cooney Fine Art : Christopher Makos : Dirty The Eye of Photography
Daniel Cooney Fine Art presents a solo exhibition by Christopher Makos titled “Dirty.” A career overview featuring mostly unseen work from every stage of the artist’s life, Dirty features a selection of 40 vintage photographs, collages, and assemblages that celebrate the daring, decadent, and delectable moments of life with equal panache.
Reveling in the spirit of freedom, innovation, and creativity that has defined Makos’s oeuvre for half a century, Dirty features photographs of Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Debbie Harry, Patti Smith, Iggy Pop, Richard Hell, Liza Minnelli, and John Lennon alongside a swath of sumptuous male nudes and figurative stud ies. This is in addition to original contact sheets, vintage Polaroids, silver oxide prints, gelatin silver prints and collages.
The works featured in Dirty reflect the advice Makos received while apprenticing with Man Ray in Fregene, Italy, at the outset of his artistic journey in 1976 – “Obey your instinct.” Possessed with the innate gift to fuse art and cultural artifact in a singular work, Makos came to the notice of kindred spirit, Andy Warhol, and the two quickly became lifelong collaborators and confidantes. Makos taught Warhol photography; Warhol taught Makos the business of art. Together the dynamic duo would travel the globe, enjoying the pleasures of mutual camaraderie.
Dirty illustrates the many facets of their storied relationship, and Mako s ‘ s ro le as an independent artist in the Fa ct o ry. Whether photographing Warhol and Christopher Reeve in conversation, or sharing a more intimate moment with Warhol lying face down on the studio floor while receiving a full body massage, Makos is the consummate insider, recording history as it unfolds before his very eyes.
16 September 2020
CULTURED
DANIEL COONEY FINE ART PUTS SEMINAL DOCUMENTARIAN CHRISTOPHE
The 1970s and ’80s were a time of transition in America like no other, creating a trajectory that enabled even creatives of today to build from a place of inherent authenticity. This period represented a sense of freeness, abandoning traditional approaches to artistic process. The careers of some of the most prolific creatives in history catapulted during that time, from Halston to Nam June Paik and, of course, the renowned photographer Christopher Makos. This September, Daniel Cooney Fine Art presents the exuberant “DIRTY”— an exhibition showcasing a range of Makos’s unseen photographic work from the course of his resilient, multi-decade career. Setting the tone for our phone conversation this summer, Makos explains, “So much of these photographs is a moment in time; an experience, a memory… each is almost like a personal diary.”
15 September 2020
AnOther
In Pictures: The Illicit 1980s Nudes of Christopher Makos
At the outset of his artistic career in 1976, May Ray imparted upon American photographer Christopher Makos a simple ethos to make great work: “obey your instinct” – a directive that has served him well over the years.
Infused with a delectable mix of confidence, charisma, and striking beauty, Makos returned to New York ready to take the city by storm. The following year he published his first monograph, White Trash, a bold and beguiling collection of photos documenting the punk scene that effortlessly mixed high and low society with all the verve of a bright young thing.
Andy Warhol took notice and soon the two became friends and collaborators. When editor Bob Colacello departed Interview magazine in 1983, leaving his ‘Out’ column behind, Warhol suggested Makos start a column called ‘In’. Soon New York’s finest found their way to Makos’ studio, ready to bare it all.
“I remember at the time, if I had a model in front of me and if I didn’t ask him or her to undress they were so disappointed like, ‘Did I not make the grade?’” Makos tells AnOther. “When I look at some of these pictures now, I think about TikTok and Instagram, I was way ahead of the curve there because so many of these pictures of these sexy boys and girls; they’re of the moment now.”
10 September 2020
Interview Magazine
“It’s just five letters, and the word just means so many different things to so many people. I don’t want to say it’s controversial, but it’s a word that has so many people asking, “What the hell is [Chris] going to be showing?”
The word which photographer Christopher Makos is alluding to is Dirty, the title he gave to his forthcoming exhibition at Daniel Cooney Fine Art. In the age of Covid-19, adjectives such as “dirty,” “filthy,” or “contaminated,” often correlate to a negative connotation, especially in a germy city like New York. Yet when it came to figuring out what to call his latest show, the word “dirty” presented itself to Makos as an ingenious marketing opportunity, like a drop of Purell in the palm of his hand. “It was effective in the way that I wanted it to be effective,” he says.
Despite its polarizing namesake, the former Interview staffer is tickled with anticipation at the prospect of bringing patrons together to view his latest exhibition in a safe and soundly manner starting Friday, September 17. Makos, along with Daniel Cooney, the gallery’s owner and the curator of the show, will welcome guests in small groups of 8-10 people at a time at the West 26th Street hub. Reservations will be required and so are face masks. “I like the idea [of smaller viewings] because in the past, a hundred people show up [at exhibitions] and it’s chaotic and you don’t actually get to speak to anyone,” he says. “It’s brand new territory for all of us, but I’m confident it will be great. If you’re here in [New York City], everybody’s so polite. We all care for each other. It’s baked into the cake as New Yorkers. We’ve had to live in tight quarters with each other forever, so this is just an extension of what’s already part of us.”
The close encounters gallery-goers will experience will certainly parallel the intimacy presented within the artworks in the show. After months of social-distancing, some visitors may even consider the collection positively claustrophobic. With its survey of shots featuring stolen kisses and tight embraces between the likes of Liza Minelli and John Lennon, it’s evident that Cooney wanted to create an air of affection in his curation. After all, isn’t that we’ve all been craving for? In a city shuttering its doors left and right, Dirty is a reminder that there was once glamour and grit, and a closeness amongst friends and strangers in New York, and beyond. With Makos still walking these streets, perhaps Dirty is also a glimmer that these things will be attainable once again and the photographer will be there to capture our future moments of tenderness. Until then, the artist shares some exclusive anecdotes on his works from the exhibition below.
10 September 2020
INTERVIEW MAGAZINE
Christopher Makos was fairly new to the city when, in the early 1970s, the writer Dotson Rader introduced him to New York’s intellectual and artistic elite. Soon, the self-described “gorgeous blonde kid from Southern California” was socializing with the likes of Truman Capote, Gore Vidal, and Tennessee Williams. But it wasn’t until Rader brought the budding photographer to an Andy Warhol exhibit at the Whitney Museum of American Art that his future came into focus. Makos soon found himself inside Warhol’s inner circle, accompanying him on transatlantic trips and mingling with the biggest stars at the time—and the biggest Superstars at The Factory—with his camera always close by. Their friendship left Makos with a bounty of iconic images, many of them commissioned by this magazine, that line the walls of his Flatiron studio. Here, he takes us on a little tour.
16 October 2019
THE EYE OF PHOTOGRAPHY
With the emergence of the new world order and the shifting of both political and social norms, one thing that still remains a constant is a person’s need for love. Whomever, wherever one is, the need for home, friendship, and love remains a constant in a world full of turmoil and misunderstanding. Christopher Makos and Paul Solberg are showing photographs from recent trips to Russia, which show the normalcy between cultures regardless of political persuasions.
15 October 2019
THE EYE OF PHOTOGRAPHY
ALTERED IMAGE
Included in the exhibition Warhol Women at Lévy Gory Gallery in New York is a selection of portraits of Andy Warhol by photographer Christopher Makos. In June of 1981, Makos took more than 300 photos of his good friend wearing heavy feminine makeup and an assortment of glamorous wigs—including the iconic bleached, pixie cut variation Warhol always wore in public (and often in private), calling the project Altered Image. Documenting Warhol in a manner that rendered the artist paradoxically both costumed and exposed, these photos constitute portraiture in perhaps its truest form, and thus allow greater insight into Warhol’s own portraiture.
21 May 2019
T Magazine New York Times
That complexity is perhaps most apparent in four images near the gallery’s entrance that a casual observer might dismiss, unwisely, as outliers: These photos, taken over two days in 1981 by Christopher Makos, are of the artist himself in coifed wigs and full makeup. In one, Warhol has been rendered almost unrecognizable, with teased-up Stevie Nicks hair, drawn-on eyebrows and a flirty pose incorporating clasped hands. In another, he channels his most famous subject with an asymmetrical blond wig, a bent knee and arms crossed modestly over his crotch. Though rather than a billowing dress, he wears slim jeans, a white button-up and a plaid tie, as if, below the neck, he’s still Andy. Warhol was deeply fascinated by New York’s drag culture. As far back as the 1950s, he attended clandestine drag salons hosted by the photographer Otto Fenn and made drawings (some of them part of the Sperone Westwater show) based on Fenn’s images.
Still, Makos has said that’s not quite what these pictures are about. As Gingeras puts it,
“They’re more about undoing gender than performing drag,” adding,
“Warhol had an expansive definition of what a woman is.” “Warhol Women,” through June 15 at Lévy Gorvy, 909 Madison Avenue, New York, levygorvy.com — MERRELL HAMBLETON
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The performer Marta Miller rehearses “Lost Mountain” at her farmhouse, Certain Bird, in Stamford, Vt.
Credit
Matthew Placek
Image
04 May 2019
Another Man
REMEMBERING INTERVIEW MAGAZINE THROUGH STORIES OF THOSE WHO
“THE GREAT THING ABOUT WORKING WITH ANDY WAS THAT HE TRUSTED MY OPINION. I HAD CREATIVE AND ARTISTIC FREEDOM FOR MY TWO PAGES, WHICH WAS BOTH A BLESSING AND SOMETIMES A CURSE” – CHRISTOPHER MAKOS
29 May 2018