ANNIE LEIBOVITZ
Annie Leibovitz was born in Connecticut in 1949. She is one of the most famous American female photographers. She took her first pictures in the Philippines during the Vietnam War. When Leibovitz returned to the United States in 1970, she started her career as chief photographer for the Rolling Stone magazine. As the publication turned to printing in color, Annie Leibovitz, like many of her contemporaries, understood that she didn't have enough knowledge to work with the new technologies. Thus, she started to learn the mastery of color photography on her own. This independence helped her to use bold color and unexpected staging solutions in her images. In 1983, Leibovitz started to work for Vogue and shoot advertising campaigns and projects for Mikhail Baryshnikov, the American Ballet Theatre, and the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Photo artworks by Annie Leibovitz have been exhibited at museums and galleries worldwide, including the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., the International Center of Photography in New York, the Brooklyn Museum, the National Portrait Gallery in London, and the State Hermitage in St. Petersburg. Leibovitz is a fellow of the Royal Photographic Society. She has won numerous photography awards and was recognized as a Living Legend by the Library of Congress.
“DEMI MOORE, CULVER CITY, 1991”
The cover image made by Annie Leibovitz for Vanity Fair in August 1991 became very special for actress Demi Moore and inspired thousands of women to take similar photographs. In this shot the seven-months pregnant actress holds her hands on her breasts and belly. The title reads ‘More Demi Moore.’ Before this, no photographer had ever taken shots of nude pregnant women for glossy magazine covers before.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND, DONATELLA VERSACE (WITH RUPERT EVERETT AS MOCK TURTLE), PARIS, 2003
C-PRINT 50X60 CM EDITION 5/25 PRINTED 2005 SIGNED RECTO BY THE AUTHOR © ANNIE LEIBOVITZ
Donatella Versace got the role of the mysterious Gryphon. She was accompanied by the actor Rupert Everett, who played the role of the Mock Turtle. In Carroll’s story this creature was the closest friend to the Gryphon. The dress created for Alice by Versace is decorated with numerous frills resembling the shape of ocean waves.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND, JEAN-PAUL GAULTIER AS THE CHESHIRE CAT PARIS, 2003
C-PRINT 50X60 CM EDITION 5/25 PRINTED 2005 SIGNED RECTO BY THE AUTHOR © ANNIE LEIBOVITZ
She said that she could not imagine anyone but Jean-Paul Gaultier as the Cheshire Cat because of his smile, the most beautiful in the fashion industry. Gaultier loves this fairy tale for its charming and surreal atmosphere, the feeling of infinite possibilities to open any door and explore new worlds.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND, KARL LAGERFELD AS THE DUCHESS, PARIS, 2003
C-PRINT 50X60 CM EDITION 3/25 PRINTED 2005 SIGNED RECTO BY THE AUTHOR © ANNIE LEIBOVITZ
According to the iconic Karl Lagerfeld, the couture dress that he created for Alice in Wonderland would fit a young girl of the 1870s. Natalia Vodianova’s character looks up-to-date thanks to her footwear.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND, MARC JACOBS AS THE CATERPILLAR, PARIS, 2003
C-PRINT 50X60 CM EDITION 5/25 PRINTED 2005 SIGNED RECTO BY THE AUTHOR © ANNIE LEIBOVITZ
As part of this project, each of the designers created their own Alice dress. The only guideline from Grace Coddington, the creative director of Vogue, was to stick to Alice’s distinctive blue color. Marc Jacobs, who played the role of the Caterpillar, offered a blue mini dress.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND, TOM FORD AS THE WHITE RABBIT, PARIS, 2003
C-PRINT 50X60 CM EDITION 5/25 PRINTED 2005 SIGNED RECTO BY THE AUTHOR © ANNIE LEIBOVITZ
Tom Ford had the role of the White Rabbit, which he took on with great enthusiasm. However, the plan devised by Leibovitz for his scene was a surprise for this fashion designer because it involved challenging physical tricks. Tom Ford was dressed in an impeccable white suit from the Yves Saint Laurent men's collection selected especially for the occasion.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND, NATALIA VODIANOVA AS ALICE, PARIS, 2003
C-PRINT 50X60 CM EDITION 3/25 PRINTED 2005 SIGNED RECTO BY THE AUTHOR © ANNIE LEIBOVITZ
In 2003 Annie Leibovitz did a fashion shoot for the December issue of American Vogue on an “Alice in Wonderland” theme. Natalia Vodianova appeared as Alice. In this photo she is wearing a satin skirt and jacket from a Chanel couture collection.
“ANGELINA JOLIE, PARIS, 2005”
This is not the first time that a famous humanist, mother, and sensual woman posed for Leibovitz and Vanity Fair. Annie took nude photos of Angelina Jolie in a bath in June 2005, when the filming of ‘Mr. & Mrs. Smith’ had just wrapped.
“LADY GAGA, NEW YORK CITY, 2011”
Annie Leibovitz’s photo shoot for Vanity Fair with Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga became legendary even before the shots were published. In an interview afterwards, Lady Gaga said that the idea came from Leibovitz herself, that Annie was the one to ask her to pose for Bennett absolutely naked. At the age of 85, Tony is passionate about painting, and he was happy to do a pencil sketch of the singer. The drawing was sold in an online charity auction for $26,900.
“QUEEN ELIZABETH II, BUCKINGHAM PALACE, 2007”
In addition to the many celebrities she photographed, Leibovitz had a chance to perform a photo session with the British royal family in 2007. She was the first American citizen to receive an assignment to take an official portrait of the Queen. When Annie was interviewed about this photo shoot, she was embarrassed. Although she was proud that she had managed this complex and important session, she was surprised by a BBC claim that the Queen had suddenly left the photo shoot (which was untrue). Although BBC later took it back and apologized to the Queen and the photographer, this high-profile scandal will hardly be forgotten.