Portraits of Hollywood's glamour

The National Portrait Gallery of London examines the importance of photography in creating the stars of Hollywood with Glamour of the Gods: Hollywood Portraits, Photographs from the John Kobal Foundation.

This exhibition includes nearly 70 vintage photographs spanning 40 years of Hollywood history, with portraits of Marlene Dietrich, James Dean, Joan Collins, Marlon Brando, Elizabeth Taylor and Marilyn Monroe by photographers including George Hurrell, Clarence Sinclair Bull, Laszlo Willinger, Bob Coburn and Ruth Harriet Louise.

These portraits are shown alongside film scene stills including, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers for Swing Time and James Dean for Rebel without a Cause.

The images released to the public depicted the actors as glamorous and inaccessible, imbuing them with mystique. Often stars would build up a relationship with a photographer as was the case with Greta Garbo and Clarence Sinclair Bull, and Joan Crawford and George Hurrell. This was a time before paparazzi, and these photographs distributed by the studios were the only vehicle of connection between stars and fans.

Date: from July 7 until October 23.
Location: National Portrait Gallery. St Martin's Place. London. WC2H 0HE.
Hours: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 6pm. Thursday and Friday from 10am to 9pm.