'The Living and the Dead': Life's work of photographer Anton Corbijn

This image of Anton Corbijn standing at the Hamburg retrospective in front of his classic portraits of Johnny Cash and the band Nirvana — both taken in 1993 — symbolizes the love for music that has so inspired the Dutch photographer across 40 years. "Music was the biggest thing for me," he once said. Many of his works are showcased at the "Anton Corbijn: The Living and the Dead" retrospective.

He would later work with Depeche Mode and U2, but Anton Corbijn began as a self-taught photographer. He was born on May 20,1955 in the Dutch town of Strijen, the son of a pastor. From the early 1980s he moved from photography to music videos. In 2007, Corbijn rose to global prominence as a feature filmmaker with Control (pictured), about the life of singer Ian Curtis from the band Joy Division.

Music fascinated the introverted Corbijn from his early youth. For him, the camera was a social tool which helped him overcome social barriers and connect him with his favorite artists. The camera allowed him to drop his reserved guard and, through photography, led to deep connections and friendships with his many subjects — including Irish band U2.

Corbijn's black-and-white photographs always speak in the language of melancholy. With a Hasselblad camera he portrayed musicians, painters, models and actors. In 2002 he shot a series of self-portraits, in which he disguised himself as dead rock musicians. Here, he poses in front of a self-portrait which is part of his retrospective exhibition.

At 19, Corbijn decided to become a freelance photographer. At the beginning of the 1980s he moved from The Hague to London. One of the first bands he photographed in his adopted home were post-punk pioneers Joy Division. He soon became an in-demand photographer for music bible NME, snapping Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Miles Davis, David Bowie (above right) and many more.

In addition to Joy Division, Corbijn formed close relationships with the bands Depeche Mode and U2, and began to shoot many of their album covers and direct their music videos. One of his most famous music clips was "Heart-Shaped Box" by band Nirvana, fronted by rock icon Kurt Cobain (pictured), for which he won the 1994 MTV Music Award for best art direction.

As one of the world's most in-demand music video directors, Corbijn has also shot seminal videos for Depeche Mode, The Killers, Arcade Fire, Roxette, Metallica, U2, Nick Cave, Johnny Cash, Mercury Rev, Travis, Bryan Adams, Joni Mitchell and Coldplay (pictured), for whom he directed the clips for the singles "Talk" and "Viva la Vida."

Having shot the iconic album cover for U2's 1987 album, The Joshua Tree, and directed several U2 video clips, including for "Achtung Baby," Corbijn used his inimitable portrait style for this 1996 photograph of the band's singer, Bono. The image can be seen up close at the retrospective at Hamburg's Bucerius Kunst Forum.

His debut as a feature filmmaker was Control — an elegant and grainy black-and-white film reminiscent of the early days of cinema. In his second feature, The American starring George Clooney (pictured right), he stunned audiences with his minimalism and still images of barren and desolate landscapes. The film's striking soundtrack was composed by German pop icon Herbert Grönemeye.

In Corbijn's 2014 film, A Most Wanted Man, Grönemeyer (pictured left) stars on screen in a supporting role. The two artists have been friends for 25 years, and Grönemeyer explained: "We are like a pair of lovers. There is a chemistry between us that I cannot quite explain. There are also differences: Anton is a very smart, wise person. I am rather childish, temperamental."

Early in his career, Corbijn could let his photographs speak for themselves. Now he regularly gives interviews at film festivals, such as the Berlinale and Cannes. However, despite his wide popularity as a filmmaker, he once explained: "I like the melancholy side of life and use it as a starting point for my films. I believe that we all live our lives alone."