PETER LINDBERGH, THE MAN BEHIND NATURAL BUT POWERFUL IMAGES

On the 3rd of September, it was announced in an official Instagram post that the great Peter Lindbergh has passed away at the age of 74. The fashion photography titan was known for producing the most iconic images, from black and white portraits of supermodels of the 90s’ to Pirelli Calendar – three times. He redefined the standards of the discipline by capturing the natural beauty of the models in raw portraits, which highlighted women in a new light. He once said, “I hate retouching. I hate make-up. I always say, ‘take the make-up off!”
The most prominent photograph he produced – that changed the game for cover magazines – was Anna Wintour’s debut cover as an editor-in-chief for Vogue November 1988. It featured Israeli model Michaela Bercu, wearing a haute couture Christian Lacroix jacket with a beaded cross in the middle of the black jacket. It was a revolutionary image because for the first time, the model was wearing jeans and she was smiling genuinely wide, her eyes were closed. Her perfectly blonde hair was blowing across her glowing face. It look candid as if Lindbergh happen to pass by her and simply took a photo. That image changed the perception of the society towards women and the strategy of Vogue and many more magazines – to focus on the power of women, not just the clothes and the jewelry.
The prolific photographer’s iconic and influential images were revered in a book, Peter Lindbergh: A Different Vision on Fashion Photography, and the recently published coffee table book, Peter Lindbergh: Shadows on the Wall. His legacy continues as publications publish fashion magazines that define the significance of a contemporary woman or man, to reflect on the social or human reality – by stripping them of commercialism to expose the unvarnished soul of an artist.
September 15, 2019 // 0 Comment
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