Saint Laurent Paris Creative Director Hedi Slimane has been cataloging his collection of black and white photographs on his blog, Hedi Slimane Diary, for nearly a decade. With a pared-down, rock aesthetic that is aligned with his clothing designs, Slimane’s photographs offer an intimate glimpse into the London, New York, and Los Angeles rock music scenes. As the subject of the Fondation Pierre Bergé – Yves Saint Laurent’s fall exposition, “Sonic,” Slimane’s fifteen years of photographic archives focus on both performers and their fans, and feature studio portraits of music giants such as Lou Reed, Keith Richards, and Amy Winehouse alongside images from Los Angeles’ alternative music scene. The previously unseen studio portraits will be presented alongside images culled from Slimane’s 2011 “California Song” solo show at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles,which came to define a new visual vocabulary for indie rock imagery. “Sonic” juxtaposes the rock music realms of London and California through still photographs and documentary-style video installations, traversing oceans, generations, and musical currents to reveal a universal grittiness, vulnerability, and creative passion.

Sonic opened September 18th, 2014, 5 Avenue Marceau, Paris. 

This portfolio originally appeared in Document’s Fall/Winter 2014 issue.