'The Sir Elton John and David Furnish Gallery' at the V&A, London

The Gallery 101 of the Victoria & Albert Museum has been renamed in honor of one of the most illustrious names in the history of music: Sir Elton John! The British artist, and his partner in marriage, David Furnish, are both photography enthusiasts owning one of the largest private collections in the world, The Sir Elton John Photography Collection, which recently signed a partnership with the V&A in London, significantly enriching the Center recently opened by the Museum. Sir Elton John said: "The V&A is known for its dedication to teaching, promoting public research facilities and learning-based exhibitions focused on the mechanics and history of photographic arts. David and I, consider this partnership perfect, given its commitment to the education and celebration of this medium and art.The new Photographic Center, together with the extension planned for 2022, will not only raise photography, but will help to encourage new artists, patrons and collectors, such as me. We are pleased to be part of this exciting moment and we hope that the public can abandon themselves to the same enthusiasm and appreciation for photography, which I experienced myself when I started collecting ". Sir Elton John and David Furnish along with the works in their collection, which includes rare gems by artists such as Irving Penn, Man Ray, Dorothea Lange, Herbert Bayer and many others, have given a conspicuous donation to the V&A Photo Center, which is now called 'The Sir Elton John and David Furnish Gallery', the partnership will also include an important co-curated temporary exhibition, with further details to be announced at the end of the course.

Tristram Hunt, Director of the V&A, said: “We are immensely grateful to Sir Elton John and David Furnish for their generosity in supporting our Photography Centre and mission to make historic and contemporary photography available to the widest possible audience. We are united by a deep commitment to the medium, and there are huge synergies between our collections, particularly around 20th century modernist and contemporary colour photography. The Sir Elton John Photography Collection was a major lender to our 2014 exhibition, Horst: Photographer of Style. I very much look forward strengthening our collaboration with Sir Elton, David and their team and seeing our collections in dialogue in a new and revelatory photography exhibition.” Elena Arzani