Michael Joseph (1941-) - First Benson and Hedges Ad, authentic darkroom print
03
days
13
hours
59
minutes
39
seconds
Current bid
€ 15
No reserve price
Expert
Selected by Kai Brückner
Over 35 years' experience; former gallery owner and Museum Folkwang curator.
Estimate € 850 - € 1,050
 | €15 | |
|---|---|---|
 | €10 | |
| €8 | |
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Michael Joseph’s hand-signed 1960 gelatin-silver print titled 'First Benson and Hedges Ad, authentic darkroom print' is a vintage still life measuring 39.5 by 26 cm and described as extremely fine.
AI-assisted summary
Description from the seller
The First Benson & Hedges Advertisement – London, 1960s
Photographer: Michael Joseph
Photographed: London, 1960s
Medium: Original vintage darkroom photograph
Campaign: Benson & Hedges
Annotated: “1st Benson & Hedges Adv.”
Mount size 50cm wide by 40 cm high
Signed and dated by Michael Joseph
A fascinating piece of British advertising history from the very beginning of Michael Joseph’s career.
Created for Benson & Hedges, this beautifully controlled still life transforms an everyday cigarette packet into an object of luxury: packets of Special Filter cigarettes sit inside a wonderfully battered lockable cash box, complete with key, while a single cigarette rests across another packet alongside.
The contrast is particularly effective - polished product against a box bearing all the knocks, scratches and wear of real life. Even at this early stage, Michael’s instinct for composition, texture and visual storytelling is clearly present.
What makes this particular print especially interesting is Michael’s own handwritten annotation beneath the photograph: “1st Benson & Hedges Adv.” Together with his signature and the London dating, it gives the piece a direct connection to the earliest years of his commercial career.
This is an authentic vintage darkroom photograph from Michael Joseph’s personal archive, preserved not simply as an advertising image, but as a surviving working object from the golden age of London advertising photography.
A deceptively simple still life - and a remarkable early milestone in Michael Joseph’s photographic career.
Please note that an AI-generated simulation showing the photograph framed and displayed on a wall has been included purely to illustrate how the work might look in an interior setting. Scale and proportions are approximate and the simulation is intended as a visual guide only.
The photograph is sold unframed. Thank you for your understanding.
#MichaelJoseph #BensonAndHedges #VintageAdvertising #AdvertisingPhotography #1960sLondon #BritishAdvertising #StillLifePhotography #VintagePhotography #DarkroomPrint #BritishPhotography #CommercialPhotography #PhotographyHistory #PhotographyCollector #CollectiblePhotography #MichaelJosephArchive
Seller's Story
My father, Michael Joseph, was a London-based advertising photographer, active from the mid-1960s to the early 1990s, and best known for his photographs for the Rolling Stones’ Beggars Banquet gatefold.
My continuing mission is to share what we affectionately call “the other photographs”: the lesser-known treasures from his extraordinary archive — original darkroom prints, test prints, alternative frames from major shoots, his celebrated group compositions, and more intimate, personal images.
For this special Solo Seller Auction, I am particularly excited to include a selection from Michael’s 1964 Vietnam archive — photographs that have never previously been seen or offered for sale. These remarkable images reveal a very different side of his work, made when he was just 23 years old.
Alongside Michael’s authentic vintage darkroom prints, I am also presenting a new generation of works: striking prints on aluminium and my own handmade cyanotypes, created from his original negatives and transparencies in the Dordogne sunshine. Some are made on vintage photographic paper retrieved from Michael’s own working library, bringing the archive quite literally into a new generation.
Together, the collection brings photographic history and contemporary experimentation side by side — from unique vintage prints made by Michael himself to bold new interpretations of his remarkable archive.
I hope you enjoy discovering these photographs as much as I enjoy bringing them to light — sometimes preserved exactly as Michael made them, sometimes given an entirely new life.
All works are carefully protected and packed with the attention appropriate to collectible photographic artworks.
For US buyers: customs duties and applicable import charges are paid at source and included in the shipping cost. No additional charges should normally be payable on delivery, subject to any change in regulations.
Translated by Google TranslateThe First Benson & Hedges Advertisement – London, 1960s
Photographer: Michael Joseph
Photographed: London, 1960s
Medium: Original vintage darkroom photograph
Campaign: Benson & Hedges
Annotated: “1st Benson & Hedges Adv.”
Mount size 50cm wide by 40 cm high
Signed and dated by Michael Joseph
A fascinating piece of British advertising history from the very beginning of Michael Joseph’s career.
Created for Benson & Hedges, this beautifully controlled still life transforms an everyday cigarette packet into an object of luxury: packets of Special Filter cigarettes sit inside a wonderfully battered lockable cash box, complete with key, while a single cigarette rests across another packet alongside.
The contrast is particularly effective - polished product against a box bearing all the knocks, scratches and wear of real life. Even at this early stage, Michael’s instinct for composition, texture and visual storytelling is clearly present.
What makes this particular print especially interesting is Michael’s own handwritten annotation beneath the photograph: “1st Benson & Hedges Adv.” Together with his signature and the London dating, it gives the piece a direct connection to the earliest years of his commercial career.
This is an authentic vintage darkroom photograph from Michael Joseph’s personal archive, preserved not simply as an advertising image, but as a surviving working object from the golden age of London advertising photography.
A deceptively simple still life - and a remarkable early milestone in Michael Joseph’s photographic career.
Please note that an AI-generated simulation showing the photograph framed and displayed on a wall has been included purely to illustrate how the work might look in an interior setting. Scale and proportions are approximate and the simulation is intended as a visual guide only.
The photograph is sold unframed. Thank you for your understanding.
#MichaelJoseph #BensonAndHedges #VintageAdvertising #AdvertisingPhotography #1960sLondon #BritishAdvertising #StillLifePhotography #VintagePhotography #DarkroomPrint #BritishPhotography #CommercialPhotography #PhotographyHistory #PhotographyCollector #CollectiblePhotography #MichaelJosephArchive
Seller's Story
My father, Michael Joseph, was a London-based advertising photographer, active from the mid-1960s to the early 1990s, and best known for his photographs for the Rolling Stones’ Beggars Banquet gatefold.
My continuing mission is to share what we affectionately call “the other photographs”: the lesser-known treasures from his extraordinary archive — original darkroom prints, test prints, alternative frames from major shoots, his celebrated group compositions, and more intimate, personal images.
For this special Solo Seller Auction, I am particularly excited to include a selection from Michael’s 1964 Vietnam archive — photographs that have never previously been seen or offered for sale. These remarkable images reveal a very different side of his work, made when he was just 23 years old.
Alongside Michael’s authentic vintage darkroom prints, I am also presenting a new generation of works: striking prints on aluminium and my own handmade cyanotypes, created from his original negatives and transparencies in the Dordogne sunshine. Some are made on vintage photographic paper retrieved from Michael’s own working library, bringing the archive quite literally into a new generation.
Together, the collection brings photographic history and contemporary experimentation side by side — from unique vintage prints made by Michael himself to bold new interpretations of his remarkable archive.
I hope you enjoy discovering these photographs as much as I enjoy bringing them to light — sometimes preserved exactly as Michael made them, sometimes given an entirely new life.
All works are carefully protected and packed with the attention appropriate to collectible photographic artworks.
For US buyers: customs duties and applicable import charges are paid at source and included in the shipping cost. No additional charges should normally be payable on delivery, subject to any change in regulations.
Translated by Google TranslateDetails
Date of print
1960
Artist
Michael Joseph (1941-)
Sold by
Owner or reseller
Title of artwork
First Benson and Hedges Ad, authentic darkroom print
Condition
Extremely fine
Technique
Gelatin-silver print
Height
26 cm
Edition
Vintage still life from the sixties
Width
39.5 cm
Signature
Hand signed
Genre
Fine art photography
Sold by
