Anton Corbijn 2023
As a young man I hungered for direction and guidance, so when my friend Rick McGinnis and I saw the chance to meet Dutch music photographer Anton Corbijn in the fall of 1987 we leapt at it.
A record company rep told us that he’d be dropping by a venue box office to pick up some tickets mid-afternoon; once he arrived we pounced on him for an interview and pictures. This was still novel for him, so he agreed, bringing us to his modest Toronto hotel room a short distance from the concert hall. (Text excerpts and portraits of Corbijn can be found here for me, and here for McGinnis.)
I had brought a fledgling portfolio that day, hoping for some encouragement or advice from this 32-year-old, who was already a legend to me. He flipped through the book, sometimes noting subjects that he had also photographed. “Oh, it’s Johnny,” he said without expression, and pointed to my John Lydon portrait from a year before. Once he came to the end he closed the book and passed it back to me without comment.
I was used to restrained Canadians, but this was a new level of non-communication. I didn’t know what to make of it. Did he really think that my pictures were that bad, that there was no hint of promise? I didn’t expect him to take me under his wing, but a few words of support would have meant the world to me.
This memory was certainly front of mind when friend Tim Soter and I decided to attend the Q&A screening of Corbijn’s latest film, “Square the Circle.” I texted to Tim, “Have I made it clear that I’m an Anton Corbijn fanboy? (I’ll do my best to keep it together.)”
I’ve met hundreds of famous people, but most of them aren’t my heroes. Plus, I can usually hide behind a camera, and focus on the job at hand. But in this situation, I’m literally going there to say , “Hello,” and to see if he’ll greet me warmly.
A number of friends have crossed paths with Corbijn professionally over the years, and when my name came up he apparently gave a nod of recognition. Plus, when my retrospective book Uneasy came out a few years ago (featuring our 1987 portrait) I was able to get one to him through a publishing world friend (he had seen it featured in The Guardian column, “My Best Shot,” and wrote, “I saw a great shot of his of Billy Joel this week that reminded me to ask you about the book.”
Still, I was anxious. If this went badly, I knew that it would haunt me.
Tim and I met at the movie theater and got our seats. The film, on seventies design group Hipgnosis, was great fun and afterwards there was a short sit down with key subject Aubrey Powell, and director Corbijn.
The Q&A broke up abruptly and the audience stood up all at once; many approached the front to talk with the celebrated guests. Corbijn put on his jacket and scarf and headed for the door, but the audience was still exiting, and so he contented himself in the corner of the aisle while it cleared.
He shook hands with a few folks who came up to him with familiarity. Perhaps they were local musicians, or New York industry folks. Knowing that my opportunity could disappear quickly I stepped up and got next to him. When I saw an opening, I leaned in, “Hi Anton, I just wanted to say ‘hello.’” He put out his hand and as we shook I added, “It’s Chris Buck.” He responded, “It’s been a long time,” and smiled slightly.
He also acknowledged the book that I’d sent him, which confirmed that he actually knew who I was. We talked for another minute and then I started to move on. But before I could do so a young man I didn’t know stepped up to us and exclaimed, “I have to get a picture of my two photographic heroes together!” We turned our gaze to his camera, and awkwardly stood for a moment while he took his photo.
Image: Tim Soter captures the meeting (although not the photographer referenced above)