George Hoyningen-Huene
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free encyclopedia)
Baron George
Hoyningen-Huene (1900 - 1968) was a seminal fashion photographer of the
1920s and 1930s. He was born in Russia to Baltic German and American
parents and spent his working life in France, England and the United
States.
Born in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on September 4, 1900, Hoyningen-Huene
was the only son of Baron Barthold Theodorevitch von Hoyningen-Huene
(1859-1942), a Baltic nobleman and military officer, and his wife, Emily
Anne "Nan" Lothrop (1860-1927), a daughter of George Van Ness Lothrop, an
American minister to Russia. (The couple was married in Detroit, Michigan,
in 1888.) He had two sisters. Helen (died 1976) became a fashion designer
in France and the United States, using the name Helen de Huene. Elizabeth
(1891-1973), also known as Betty, also became a fashion designer (using
the name Mme. Yteb in the 1920s and 1930s) and married, first, Baron
Wrangel, and, second, Lt. Col. Charles Norman Buzzard, a British Army
officer.
During the Russian Revolution, the Hoyningen-Huenes fled to first London,
and later Paris. By 1925 George had already worked his way up to chief of
photography of the French Vogue. In 1931 he met Horst, the future
photographer, who became his lover and frequent model, and traveled to
England with him that winter. While there, they visited photographer Cecil
Beaton, who was working for the British edition of Vogue. In 1931, Horst
began his association with vouge, publishing his first photograph in the
French edition of Vogue in November of that year.
In 1935 Hoyningen-Huene moved to New York City where he did most of his
work for Harper's Bazaar. He published two art books on Greece and Egypt
before relocating to Hollywood, where he earned his wedge by shooting
glamorous portraits for the film industry.
Hoyningen-Huene worked before anything resembling contemporary flash
photography was known. Working in huge studios and with whatever lighting
worked best. There is something about the texture of his black and whites
that one seldom finds in contemporary work. Beyond fashion, he was a
master portraitist as well from Hollywood stars to other celebrities.
He also worked in Hollywood in various capacities in the film industry,
working closely with George Cukor, notably as special visual and color
consultant for the 1954 Judy Garland movie A Star Is Born. He served a
similar role for the 1957 film Les Girls, which starred Kay Kendall and
Mitzi Gaynor and the Sophia Loren film Heller in Pink Tights.
He died at 68 years of age in Los Angeles.
