Culture

Helmut Newton. BABY SUMO

31 Ottobre 2020

Created on the occasion of Helmut Newton’s 100th birthday and TASCHEN’s 40th anniversary, we present BABY SUMO, the ultimate collectible! Published in a limited edition of 10,000 numbered copies, it is precisely half the size of the famous 1999 original.

The Helmut Newton SUMO was overwhelming in every respect: a 464-page homage to the most influential and controversial photographer of the 20th century, and a book that broke records for weight, dimensions, and resale price.

Helmut Newton (1920–2004) always demonstrated a healthy disdain for easy or predictable solutions. SUMO — a bold and unprecedented publishing venture — was an irresistible project. The idea of a spectacular compendium of images, reproduced to exceptional page size and to state-of-the-art origination and printing standards, emerged from an open, exploratory dialogue between photographer and publisher. With its awe-inspiring weight of around 35 kilos, its unusual concept and its flawless technical production, the book set new standards.

Helmut Newton. BABY SUMO — Helmut Newton © The Helmut Newton Estate Villa D’Este, Lake Como, Italy 1975

Published in a limited edition of 10,000 signed and numbered copies, the first SUMO sold out soon after release and quickly multiplied its value. As a worldwide publishing sensation, the book took the art monograph genre to an entirely new level and is today found in numerous important collections around the world, including New York’s Museum of Modern Art. Legendary SUMO copy number one, autographed by over 100 of the book’s featured celebrities, also broke the record for the most expensive book of the 20th century, selling at auction in Berlin on April 6, 2000 for 620,000 German Marks.

Created on the occasion of the centenary of Helmut Newton’s birth and TASCHEN’s 40th anniversary, this spectacular new edition edited by June Newton is now available. Shrunk to exactly half the size of the famous 1999 original, the “BABY SUMO” is no less glamorous: With more than 400 breathtaking images, reproduced and printed to the latest standards, it still has all the scope of a private exhibition of photographs. It is likewise published in a limited edition of 10,000 copies and comes with a detailed booklet documenting the making of this major publishing event. Philippe Starck has once again designed the accompanying book stand, this time including a pedestal, as an ideal way to display the volume.

BABY SUMO, the ultimate collectible. For Newton fans and anyone who wants to own a piece of art history. The legend lives on!

Collector’s edition of 10,000 numbered copies with a bookstand by Philippe Starck
Edited and revised by June Newton

The photographer

Helmut Newton (1920–2004) was one of the most influential photographers of all time. He first achieved international fame in the 1970s while working principally for French Vogue, he became celebrated for his controversial scenarios. Most striking was his ability to make a throughly planned photograph seem fresh and dynamic. His many titles and awards included Commandeur de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres.

The editor

June Newton, née Browne, was born in Melbourne, Australia, in 1923. As a young woman she was passionately interested in the theater, and worked as an actress under the name June Brunell, receiving the Erik Kuttner Award in 1956. She married the photographer Helmut Newton in Melbourne in 1948 and became a photographer herself in 1970, using the pseudonym Alice Springs. Her work has been featured in numerous exhibitions and publications, including Vanity Fair, Interview, Elle, and Vogue. Her many famous subjects include William S. Burroughs, Catherine Deneuve, Graham Greene, Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Mapplethorpe, Yves Saint Laurent, and Nicole Kidman.