Popular Culture
Popular Culture
An Extensive Collection of Signed Polaroids of Musicians, Actors, and Creatives By Photographer Ilpo Musto, 1970s-1990s
Lot Closed
September 12, 01:37 PM GMT
Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
A significant collection of approximately 325 colour Polaroids taken by photographer Ilpo Musto, taken over the course of their career from the 1970s-1990s, each signed in various inks by the celebrity featured in the portraits, notable artists include: Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, George Harrison, Mick Jagger, Charlie Watts, Bill Wyman, Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Taylor, John Deacon, Bruce Dickinson, Steve Harris, Adrian Smith, Dave Murray, Nico McBrain, Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Carey Lovell, Kristina Wayborn, Lois Maxwell, Maryam D’Abo, Maud Adams, Mark Knopfler, John Illsley, Hal Linden, Alan Clark, Terry Butcher, Andy Bown, Francis Rossi, Jeff Rich, John Victor ‘Rhino’ Edwards, Rick Parfitt, Annie Lennox, Dave Stewart, Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Robin Gibb, Willie Nelson, Brian Wilson, David Byrne, Peter Gabriel, Kim Wilde, Run-D.M.C., Lionel Ritchie, Take That, Cliff Richard, Marc Almond, Andy Summers, Belinda Carlisle, Mick Hucknall, Darude, Verdine White, Simon Le Bon, John Taylor, Mick Talbot, Steven Spielberg, Maggie Smith, Muhammed Ali, Charles Dance, Samuel L. Jackson, Ray Liotta, Robert Duvall, Mike Myers and Dana Carvey, Michael Caine, Ben Kingsley, Julie Andrews, Leslie Nielsen, John Travolta, Dolph Lundgren, Jeremy Irons, Liza Minelli, Jerry Hall, Jane Seymour, Judi Dench, Kevin Bacon, Harrison Ford, John Hurt, Jim Henson, Divine, Jack Lemmon, Tom Selleck, Patrick Swayze, Tommy Lee Jones, Alice Cooper, Meatloaf, Ian Gillan, Paul Weller, Slim Jim Phantom, Brian Setzer, Denise Dufort, Eric Clapton, David Gilmour, Little Richard, Bob Geldof, Ray Davies, Uli John Roth, Johnny Rotten, Siouxsie Sioux, Malcolm McLaren, Frank Zappa, and Feargal Sharkey, among many others, sold without copyright or any reproduction rights.
Dimensions
Each Polaroid 4 1/8in x 4 1/8in (10.5cm x 10.5cm); or 3 1/2in x 4in (9cm x 10cm)
Provenance
Offered directly by Finnish photographer Ilpo Musto.
Images
Additional Polaroid images are available on request.
Photographer Ilpo Musto began his career in journalism in the late 1970s, by interviewing British Television stars for a Finnish TV magazine. Over the next few years he interviewed numerous actors and directors in London and overseas. At this time, Dallas was arguably the most popular TV series in the world, and Musto flew to Los Angeles to interview its principal cast members. It was from this point that he acquired a Polaroid camera in L.A., to take portraits of every celebrity he met which the star would then autograph - the first subject being Patrick Duffy ('Bobby Ewing'). Over decades Musto took hundreds of Polaroids at events, parties, press junkets, and film festivals.
Musto recollects some of the myriad encounters with his favourite (and most memorable) Polaroid subjects over the years:
The Beatles: "John Lennon had moved to New York before I went to London so I never met him. But I met Ringo, George, and Paul at various locations. When I knew I was going to meet Ringo I bought a tambourine which he signed. George Harrison took part in the Sanremo Song Festival to promote his album 'Cloud Nine' (1987). Paul's Polaroid was taken at Hamilton's photo gallery in Mayfair. He has his wife Linda and his step-sister Ruth in the photo with him."
Queen: "The band was taking part in the Montreux TV Festival in Switzerland in 1988 and I was invited to their party on the boat called "Italie". I had my Polaroid camera with me and took a shot of each of the four members of the band."
The Rolling Stones: "Bill Wyman was the most accessible of the Stones as he was kind of the chronicler of the band's career. I met him a couple of times. Charlie was the nicest: when I interviewed him about his new jazz album at a Mayfair hotel, the TV was on and he was keeping eye an his favourite sport - cricket."
James Bond: "I was invited to the 'Octopussy' (1983) party at the Roof Gardens in Kensington where I took Polaroids of Roger Moore, Lois Maxwell, Maud Adams, Jane Seymour etc. I met Sean Connery separately when he had a small press junket in London for 'The Untouchables' (1987)".
Bee Gees: "The Gibb brothers were in London promoting the 'Staying Alive' film in 1983. I was invited to the junket and took Polaroids on each of them. It was great to meet the guys as I had been a fan of their music from the late 1960s."
Dire Straits: "The band played a showcase gig in Guildford in the early 1980s. After the gig I met them at the after show party and took Polaroids of the members of the band. Eric Clapton was there, too - he wanted to check out the Dire Straits. So I took a Polaroid of him, too."
