On September 23, 1992, photographers Constance Hansen and Russell Peacock, known as the duo Guzman, were invited into the Hollywood home of Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love.
According to The Telegraph, the young parents were wary of the press after an unflattering Vanity Fair profile had raised questions about their suitability as parents.
However, Hansen and Peacock found a surprisingly domestic scene. Cobain, still in his pajamas, and a friendly, chatty Love welcomed the photographers into their modest home, offering them coffee and guava pie.
The couple were completely enamored with their newborn daughter, Frances Bean, who was just five weeks old at the time.
“They were just totally in awe of their new baby,” Peacock told Fox News Digital. “That was one reason why the pictures look the way they do. They were in their own little family bubble.”
The photographers witnessed Cobain as a gentle, loving father, completely focused on his child and oblivious to the cameras.
“He was playful, he was funny,” Hansen described. “The baby was completely comfortable. He was just in awe of her just by holding her, watching her. When we were taking the photos, he didn’t even pay attention to us. All of the attention was on Frances Bean.”
The resulting images, now being published in the Guzman’s book “Family Values,” offer a rare glimpse into the private life of the grunge icons.
At the time, Kurt Cobain had just experienced the huge success of Nirvana’s breakthrough album “Nevermind,” but the couple appeared unbothered by their newfound wealth and fame.
“This was the year after this explosive, amazing, successful album of his, where his entire life basically changed,” said Hansen. “But it didn’t appear that way. They weren’t caught up yet with the reality of that.”
The Guzman were struck by the love and intimacy they witnessed in the Cobain-Love household, despite the looming specter of the Vanity Fair profile that had caused the couple so much disruption.
“There was a lot of love in that home. There was a lot of love in that family,” Hansen said. “These guys were just in their own little bubble. It was their version of family values.”
Tragically, this blissful domestic scene was short-lived. Just three years later, Kurt Cobain died by suicide at the age of 27, devastating his fans and leaving his young family bereft. However, Hansen said,
“What’s interesting is that their music is still popular. There’s a new generation of people that are listening to the music long after Kurt died. They’re still getting something out of it. … They really were talented. The lyrics were so good. They touched lives.”
These rare, intimate photographs of Cobain, Love and their daughter provide a counterpoint to the public personas of the grunge icons. They offer a glimpse into the private joys and struggles of a young family thrust into the glaring spotlight of fame, a family that was all too brief.
