Tennis Girl poster creator dies

Let's be honest! The only reason why this is news is that it gives us a new opportunity to display the poster.

Though it certainly is sad news to learn that someone died, let’s face it: most people care only about the poster!

Captured on a tennis court at Birmingham University in the summer of 1976 – using a Nikon F camera and Kodak film – the image attained iconic status when it was made into an Athena poster. The girl in the picture was the photographer's then girlfriend, Fiona Butler. Apparently, she couldn't even play tennis at the time.

Elliott said about the photo that “It is not a picture I would buy”, but on his own website, he called it "the most published photograph in the world".

This "schoolboy's fantasy" was a money-maker for him and his widow Noelle; they are still receiving royalties. Fiona Butler was not paid for her work and maintained she will never be embarrassed by the photograph.

But(t) if Tennis Girl dominated the 80s, the 50s and 60s flowed under the sign of Jimmi and Audrey:

"because it's everything your parents didn't want you to have anything to do with. The long hair, spaced-out expression, the fag. Youth culture was about identifying with something your parents thought ridiculous."

The 80’s belonged to the (NEW) Man and Baby:

If the Tennis Girl was made for the boys, the Man & Baby poster was definitely made for the ladies. Gone are the days of the mythological Greek Gods, who always tried to kill their offspring. The New Man for a New Era was strong and dependable, caring and washed the dishes too. And just like the Tennis Girl, he was to remain a fantasy. He does not exist, or if he did, he was surely gay, for no woman would find such a man attractive.

Until today, I had not seen the Tennis Girl before. I like it for the “morning feeling” it conveys so well.

Sources / More info: amateur-tennis-girl, bbc-elliott-dies, bbc-posters

 

VerbaVolant, tennis, tenis, poster, photo, photography, photographer, commercial, image