A vast archive of black-and-white negatives by Bert Stern will go under the hammer at Heritage Auctions on December 8. The negatives will be sold without copyright, and a printed catalogue, Marilyn Monroe: The Last Sitting, can be purchased here.
“The 2,500 negatives offered here are of unique historical importance: while Stern retained contact proof prints, the black-and-white commercial prints familiar to collectors and exhibitions were not made from camera negatives but from proof prints, as Stern had relinquished the camera negatives to his attorney in the 1980s as private collateral. Stern’s book, The Last Sitting, reproduces the proof prints from each complete exposure roll on the left-hand pages. Heritage will, for the first time, reproduce Stern’s work directly from the original negatives, in their original exposure sequence rather than in the reversed order published in Stern’s 1982 book. The difference is dramatic, revealing unseen exposures, unmediated tonal range, and Monroe’s enduring presence as it was originally captured on film. No other significant sitting of camera originals of Monroe has ever been offered for public sale.”
In bed with Monroe…
Marilyn’s drastic weight loss is evident beneath diaphanous scarves, and an abdominal scar from her recent gallbladder removal is also plainly visible.
Assistants to Monroe and Stern, including hairdresser Kenneth Battelle and Vogue fashion editor Babs Simpson, appear in some images.
In addition to those provocative shots, Marilyn left her comfort zone and plunged into a world of haute couture.
In one sequence, her sleek evening gown, long gloves and wispy updo recall Audrey Hepburn’s oft-imitated look in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
However, the black wig series wasn’t inspired by Jacqueline Kennedy, as suggested in the auction listing – see here for the true story.
Marilyn gamely turned the tables on Stern as she toyed with a Nikon F Camera…
And while no vintage movie star was fully dressed sans jewellery and furs, a simple white veil conjured the innocent joy that made Marilyn so endearing.
With a string of pearls matching her platinum bob, she raises her black flared dress coyly, as if re-enacting her ‘skirt-blowing scene’ from The Seven Year Itch in negative.
And finally, Monroe at her most elegant in Christian Dior for Stern’s black dress sitting.
The Marilyn Report 
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