Postscript addresses the written correspondence from 1937 of model/ muse/photographer/war correspondent Lee Miller (1907-1977) mostly with artist/writer and ultimately husband Roland Penrose (1900-1984), but also with her wartime employer, Audrey Withers, editor of Vogue. Bailey was granted full access by the Lee Miller Archive at Farley Farm in East Sussex and the resulting work largely concerns itself with letters written during World War II, by the end of which she was a photographer accredited to the US Army. During the year after D-Day she witnessed the siege of St Malo, the Liberation of Paris, the fighting in Luxembourg and Alsace, the Russian/ American link up at Torgau and the liberation of Buchenwald and Dachau.
Although Postscript echoes themes addressed in 2 Willow Road, for Bailey, and hence ultimately the viewer, the involvement is more personal than that series. Much of this correspondence has the residual echoes of a passionately charged relationship and while we are never privy to the content, Bailey’s titles, drawn from the texts, and the form of the work itself leave one in little doubt as to its power despite Miller’s apparent unwillingness in this period to stand still and immerse herself in it, even after hostilities ended – they only married in 1947.
The images illuminate this through the visual evidence of the letters/telegrams themselves, the privacy of the lovers often protected by the original envelopes, yet their intimacy somehow emphasized. Shirking a conventional narrative, Bailey has again formulated a visually arresting and meditative body of work from simple and spare resources usually regarded as the rather arid fiefdom of the professional biographer.
Although Postscript echoes themes addressed in 2 Willow Road, for Bailey, and hence ultimately the viewer, the involvement is more personal than that series. Much of this correspondence has the residual echoes of a passionately charged relationship and while we are never privy to the content, Bailey’s titles, drawn from the texts, and the form of the work itself leave one in little doubt as to its power despite Miller’s apparent unwillingness in this period to stand still and immerse herself in it, even after hostilities ended – they only married in 1947.
The images illuminate this through the visual evidence of the letters/telegrams themselves, the privacy of the lovers often protected by the original envelopes, yet their intimacy somehow emphasized. Shirking a conventional narrative, Bailey has again formulated a visually arresting and meditative body of work from simple and spare resources usually regarded as the rather arid fiefdom of the professional biographer.
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Title: Don't make me wait too long From: Roland Penrose [on Townsend Channel ferry] To: Madame Lee Miller Eloui, Windsor Palace Hotel, Alexandria Postmarked: London 7.45am October 7th 1937 |
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Title: I love you From: Lee Miller [Hotel Grand-Bretagne, Athens] To: Mr Roland Penrose, 21 Downshire Hill, Hampstead, London Postmarked: Athens 6.15pm May 2nd 1938 |
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Title: Missing you From: Roland Penrose [21 Downshire Hill, Hampstead, London] To: Madame Lee Miller Eloui, Villa Albeit, Sharia Sabri Pacha, Dokki, Giza, Cairo Postmarked: London 7.30am January 10th 1939 |
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Title: Mad with Envy From: Roland Penrose [21 Downshire Hill, Hampstead, London] To: Madame Lee Miller Eloui, Villa Albeit, Sharia Sabri Pacha, Dokki, Giza, Cairo Postmarked: Cairo 8pm April 8th 1938 |
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Title: Arriving Southampton From: Lee Miller [Cable & Wireless office, Cairo] To: Mr Roland Penrose, 21 Downshire Hill, Hampstead, London Cablegram dated: Cairo 11.59am May 15th 1939 |
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Title: All My Love From: Lee Miller [Villa Albeit, Sharia Sabri Pacha, Dokki, Giza, Cairo] To: Mr Roland Penrose, 21 Downshire Hill, Hampstead, London Postmarked: Cairo 8.30pm March 8th 1939 |
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Title: Bombs bursting From: Lee Miller [at the siege of St Malo] To: Miss Audrey Withers, Vogue Magazine, 1 New Bond Street, London Rolleiflex captions dated: August 1944 |
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Title: Goodnight sweetheart From: Lee Miller [Hotel Grand-Bretagne, Athens] To: Mr Roland Penrose, 21 Downshire Hill, Hampstead, London Hand delivered: July 1st 1938 |
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Title: Tender Embraces From: Lee Miller [21 Downshire Hill, Hampstead, London] To: Captain Roland Penrose, c/o Major Battery G.CAM ACMF Postmarked: London 6.15pm March 20th 1944 |
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Title: Go Germanywards From: Lee Miller [Room 412, Hotel Scribe, Rue Scribe, Paris] To: Captain Roland Penrose, 12 Theatre Street, Norwich Cablegram dated: March 16th 1945 |
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Title: Going Pariswards From: Lee Miller [Room 412, Hotel Scribe, Rue Scribe, Paris] To: Captain Roland Penrose, 12 Theatre Street, Norwich Cablegram dated: June 22nd 1945 |
Title:
Awakening kiss
From: Lee Miller
[Room 412, Hotel Scribe, Rue Scribe, Paris]
To: Miss Audrey Withers, Vogue Magazine, 1 New Bond Street, London
Postmarked: Paris 6.15pm October 5th 1944
PRINT INFORMATION
Edition 20 + 1 A/P. Durst Lambda Fuji Archival Diasec Print .
Print size 1: 724 x 320mm. Edition 12
Print size 2: 1086 x 480mm. Edition 5
Print size 3: 1720 x 760mm . Edition 3
Print size 1: 724 x 320mm. Edition 12
Print size 2: 1086 x 480mm. Edition 5
Print size 3: 1720 x 760mm . Edition 3
For all print enquiries (pricing / availability) please send an email HERE
All artwork and images © Veronica Bailey 2024.
