Photography by Marcus Leatherdale
There are few times and places that continue to capture the global imagination like New York City in the 1980s—from the birth of the city’s famous club kid scene to the powerhouse friendship between Warhol and Basquiat, to pop stars like Debbie Harry and Madonna becoming the queens of a newly minted MTV and models such as Iman earning the moniker super. Canadian photographer Marcus Leatherdale spent the decade lensing his friends, as chronicled in his monthly Hidden Identities series for Details magazine (published as a book in 2009). In his new photo book Out of the Shadows, out now from ACC Artbooks, Leatherdale captures the faces of the moment that have been cemented in legend:
You’ve photographed a lot of icons—how did the shoots come about?
Icons? We were all just friends … I never viewed my subjects as icons. The sessions would mostly just fall into place. I would be at the same dinner party the night before and hook up the next day— this sort of scenario.
What was special about New York in the ‘80s and early ‘90s?
NYC was not gentrified at the time and there was a sense of camaraderie within the bohemian community—we were a tribe. Being creative was more important than money and prestige.
Left: Susanne Bartsch, Right: Iman Photography by Marcus Leatherdale
How has it changed or stayed the same?
Almost everything has changed—at least for me personally. I only do backdoor NYC these days. I sneak in and out of town periodically. The biggest change in 21st century NYC is the all-encompassing presence of the smartphone. Everything is now strained through one’s iPhone, no longer any living in the moment or being spontaneous. A night out is charted by one’s GPS.
When I am in town, I do not travel with a phone and it baffles everyone. I ask people to meet me at such a time and place. Its freaks them out to not have a number to text a dozen times beforehand. When I walk down the street, the only eye contact I experience is mostly from the dogs being walked. The people are too absorbed in their phones.
Did you know how legendary your subjects would be at the time or did some of them surprise you?
Meine Hidden Identities series about individuals that were a force to be reckoned with in our scene, not necessarily famous, but it is not surprising that they later became well known outside our circles. The word icon und legendary was not in my vocabulary at the time. We were all just 20-something and living in our moment.
See more from Out of the Shadows below:
Out of the Shadows out now from ACC Artbooks.