The woman with a camera focused on life in the 70’s
Carinthia West, born 1951, is a 70’s IT girl, model, actress, photographer and journalist, whose credits include Marie-Claire, Harper’s and Queen, Harper’s Bazaar, Tatler, the LA Weekly.
A self-confessed free spirit and accompanied by her ever-faithful Canon camera, she photographed some of the 20th century’s most iconic names in music, film and society in the UK and US. She was also an original proponent of the selfie – in case anyone thought generation X had invented the concept!
Muse to rock icons and friend of the stars, her visual diary over the years captured friendships and intimate moments as she “hung out” with the likes of Mick Jagger, Ronnie Wood, Helen Mirren, David Bowie, George Harrison, Carly Simon, Anjelica Huston, Robin Williams, Neil Young and Paul Simon, to name a few.
In Ronnie Wood’s words: “Carinthia took photos while we were getting on with life…”.
Daughter of a senior British Army officer, General Sir Michael M.A.R. West, and schooled in the US, she received an early grounding in high society dinners and events with the political and social elite.
Carinthia was discovered aged 16 standing at a bus stop on the King’s Road, London, by Beatles photographer Robert Whitaker. He shared a flat with Eric Clapton and doors soon opened to a world filled with sixties icons.
Online research will bring up scores of iconic stories and photos including:
- the night she was involved in transporting half of the Rolling Stones and a pregnant Krissy Wood from an all-night party in Malibu beach in Neil Young’s hearse – as you do!;
- her iconic Battersea Power Station pictures which were taken the same day as the Pink Floyd Animals album cover shoot by Hipgnosis. Her stills now feature in the Floyd’s touring exhibition ‘Their Mortal Remains’ and what happened that day with the giant inflatable pig is a story in itself; and
- being the naked girl on the cover of Robert Palmer’s second solo album Pressure Drop.
Carinthia recently relocated to Cornwall to enjoy a new phase in her life.
She was always “off stage right” somewhere; now she is re-connecting with her previous life and memories. After her godchildren encouraged her to share her vast library of slides, prints and negatives, her work has been celebrated in galleries across the world, from London to New York and San Francisco.
In an age where memories mean so much to us all, Carinthia is embracing the opportunity to revisit forgotten footprints and share what life was like in the 1970s.
We all love a story; stories embellished with pictures bring the moment to life. Now in her 70’s, Carinthia will join us to share her pictures and memories, her views on growing old gracefully, and her secrets to success and happiness as a woman which include courting serenity, avoiding stress and practicing curiosity.
Research source credits:
http://carinthiawest.co.uk/
https://en.wikipedia.org/
https://www.vanityfair.com/
https://ccagalleries.com/artists/59-carinthia-west/biography/
A life in pictures: photographer Carinthia West looks back