Hatje Cantz : Youssef Nabil - I Won't Let You Die

From Louise Bourgeois, Pierre & Gilles, Zaha Hadid and Shirin Neshat, to David Lynch, Omar Sharif, Sting and John Waters – countless artists and also celebrities from within the film, music and literature realms have posed in front of Youssef Nabil’s camera (*1972, Cairo). The first extensive monograph on the New York-based photographer collects both his shots of celebrities and friends, as well as his self portraits and visualisations of the past 15 years.

The first portraits of friends were realized after taking Literature Studies in the early 90s, just before Nabil relocated to New York and Paris where he assisted the photographers David LaChapelle and Mario Testino. His photos are hand coloured according to tradition and reflect the photographer’s study of themes such as loneliness, sexuality and death. Furthermore, his visual language gives away a nostalgic look back at glamour, elegance and the melodrama of Hollywood’s golden age.

From 12.3. – 8.4.2009 his work will be on display at The Third Line Gallery, Dubai.

Youssef Nabil - I Won't Let You Die
Text by Youssef Nabil, Octavio Zaya, interviews with Ghada Amer, Faten Hamama, Shirin Neshat
272 pages, 137 colour illustrations, 25,00 x 30,70 cm
ISBN 978-3-7757-2306-0
Hatje Cantz Verlag