The family are re-releasing a 1965 photograph of John Lennon with a toy panda in a bid to raise funds.
The portrait of John with a
panda. Inset far left, a Hard Day’s Night, Freeman’s montage of the
Beatles (Pictures courtesy of Robert Freeman © / www.freemanarchive.com)
They
hope the money will help both to fund care for Freeman, 78, who is
suffering the effects of a stroke, and to secure the preservation of his
collection of work, spanning 60 years.
Dean Freeman, one of three
children from two marriages, said their father was “very proud and a
little eccentric” and had refused previous offers of help, but they
hoped by selling the print they could provide support with dignity.
They
also hope to rescue the archive from its current home in a leaky garage
and digitise it with a view to reminding people of his talents through
books and exhibitions while he is still alive.
“I would like in
his last few years for the public to appreciate that he was quite a
groundbreaking photographer,” Dean Freeman said. Freeman, who was good
friends with Lennon, shot the first five album covers for the Beatles.
Other
subjects included Marianne Faithfull, Charlton Heston and Sophia Loren
as well as jazz greats such as Dizzy Gillespie and John Coltrane.
Freeman, who was also responsible for the first Pirelli calendar, continued to work well into his seventies, until his stroke.
Mr
Freeman said: “My father is extremely frail, living alone in a small
hostel and is in desperate need of care. He can no longer look after his
valuable archive of work.
All proceeds of our exclusive sale will
help him recuperate and preserve his wonderful images and stories. It
would be heartbreaking to see this irreplaceable body of work lost to
future generations.”
John Lennon with Panda is available as an
archival C-type metallic print A3 size at £300 plus VAT and A2 at £600
plus VAT until May 15 at www.freemanarchive.com
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