Marilyn Monroe is the symbol of the eternal feminine. She represents an era when sex was not openly discussed or depicted but was suggested in looks and body language.

And Marilyn had a language all her own. She was sex incarnate and that’s what everyone saw up on the screen.

“Marilyn is as near a genius as any actress I ever knew,” said Josh Logan, director of Bus Stop. “She is an artist beyond artistry. She is the most completely realized and authentic film actress since Garbo. She has that same unfathomable mysteriousness. She is pure cinema.”

She was the consummate Hollywood starlet who didn’t know her lines, couldn’t find her marks, showed up late but lit up the screen like a thousand suns.

In celebration of Marilyn Monroe’s 82nd birthday, the Andrew Weiss Gallery launched a landmark exhibition and sale of original photographs of Marilyn Monroe.

Walking through the tiny gallery in Beverly Hills almost every square inch of it is devoted to the sun goddess.

The Edward Weston Collection is one of the world’s largest collections of Marilyn Monroe and Hollywood original photography. The show included works by the most important photographers of the time, spanning the entire career of Norma Jeane to Marilyn Monroe.

There are many photos that are well recognized like the airplane shot with Joe Di Maggio on their honeymoon by Kashio Aoki. She looks satisfied to have finally found a father figure and he, of course, looks annoyed that someone is taking a picture of his wife.

That moment captured in time sets the stage for Joe D’s uphill battle with Marilyn’s fame and their relationship’s ultimate demise.

“I knew I belonged to the public and to the world, not because I was talented or even beautiful, but because I had never belonged to anything or anyone else,” Marilyn was quoted.

There is the youthful, sultry black and white photo for the promotion of “All About Eve” by Laszlo Willinger. She playfully looks into the camera and leads one to wonder how many producers had also gotten the same glance.

There is playful Marilyn on the beach by George Barris. Shot on Santa Monica beach with no studio lights or make-up, Marilyn is her natural self.

These are my favorites because she looks real, self evolved and in command of her sexuality. Far from the little orphan whom nobody ever said was pretty. She is having a great time and being herself.

George Barris was collaborating on a book with Marilyn at the time of her death. He had also photographed her extensively throughout her career.

The collection also includes unique printings of Bert Stern’s infamous “Last Sitting”, never- before- seen in the United States. Appearing nude and semi-nude, these portraits, un-retouched from the original camera negatives are some of the most revealing and seductively powerful images ever captured of Marilyn.

These photos, taken by Bert Stern, fashion photographer of Vogue magazine, were some of the last captured of the legendary star. While some photos were published in a well known portfolio, many of the shots have never been seen.

They are untouched without airbrushing and bare a Marilyn the world has never known. She looks older with actual imperfections like lines in her face and tiny facial hairs. She’s lost the well rounded plumpness of her youth. She’s still Marilyn but something is missing. The photos are raw depictions of a legend that would soon fall.

Taken during several alcohol infused sessions at the Hotel Bel-Air, the photographs are some of the most notable images ever captured of the world’s most famous actress. Monroe appears half asleep or drunk in most photos. She is often naked and sips Champagne. She plays up to her audience with an erotic persona on a bed of white sheets.

These pictures depict a raw truth. They reveal a woman whose talents were overshadowed by her sexuality. This was an unhappy time for Monroe. She had just been publicly criticized by Billy Wilder after Some Like It Hot, and then fired from the production of Something’s Got to Give. She had also recently endured two divorces and, in 1961, a brief stay in a psychiatric ward.

Stern preserved the humanity of a real woman who was seductively gorgeous but also extremely fragile.

The shots include titles that fit her persona like “Teasing”, “Flirtatious” and the classic “Aroused”. As if she didn’t invent the genres. The final being “Not Bad for 36”. Not bad at all Marilyn.

It obviously was a time of heavy drug use that would end her short life short 6 weeks later. But it was also a time of transition for her from the pin up girl to the method actress. It leaves one wondering what could have been.

“She was beautiful and untouched, it was as though she were just beginning,” said Bert Stern of Marilyn.

A portion of all of print sale proceeds will be donated to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Los Angeles.

>Written by d/visible contributor Tracy Hammond.

This entry was posted on Monday, September 22nd, 2008 at 11:16 am and is filed under In-depth, Culture, Film, Profile, Art & Design. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.