Artists

Catherine Opie

Press release

Glamour is mirrored in everyday life and stardust meets subculture in this documentary project by Catherine Opie. 700 Nimes Road was created in and named after the address of the home of Hollywood icon Elizabeth Taylor. Don't miss this opportunity to explore Catherine Opie's series of 50 photographs from the late film star Elizabeth Taylor's home at 700 Nimes Road in Beverly Hills. Part of the Louisiana collection, the series has been a favorite of museum guests ever since it was first shown ten years ago in the exhibition of new acquisitions, Illumination. Catherine Opie (b. 1961) is regarded as one of the most important photographers in contemporary art. Her work spans a wide range of subjects, but she is often associated with images of various subcultures and portraits of herself and friends within the queer community. While her images can at times be raw and uncompromising, in 700 Nimes Road, Opie captures Elizabeth Taylor's domestic world with extraordinary sensitivity and nuance – a strange mixture of sparkling jewels and everyday banality. Elizabeth Taylor died in hospital while Opie was working on the project, and the two therefore never had the chance to meet. The resulting series stands as a sensual monument to a bygone star—part myth, part ordinary human life. Catherine Opie's '700 Nimes Road' is from 2012. The series was acquired to the Louisianas Collection with support from The Augustinus Foundation.