The rise and rise of the beard: Facial hair gets its own Somerset House exhibition

Style photographer Mr Elbank has a new exhibition showcasing the magnificence of the beard, with dozens of portraits of waxed, dreadlocked, scruffy and chic examples of facial hair.

 

 

“Beards are undergoing such a resurgence this seemed like the ideal time to host this exhibition,” says Somerset House curator Stephen Doherty. “They’re tied up in the hipster phenomena, and I think there’s an element of rebelling against metrosexuality. That doesn’t mean you can’t be a dandy and wear a beard, though – Mr Elbank’s pictures show that beards come in all shapes and sizes, from slick little ones to great big bushy things. 

 

“In his portraits we saw a perfectly self-contained exhibition, filled with striking images of interesting people. It’s a lot of fun.”

 

 

 

 

Mr Elbank isn’t the only person to chronicle the rise of the beard. London-based street photographer Jonathan Daniel Pryce – also known as GarconJon – snapped 100 beards in 100 days, then repeated the feat, collecting the 200 images in his book 100 Beards (100beards.tumblr.com).