Pirelli Calendar 2017

BY: Michael Perris

For the 2017 Pirelli Calendar—the 44th edition of this venerable fashion tradition—the legendary Peter Lindbergh was the photographer. It’s the third time he’s done it—he also shot the Cal, as it is known, in 1996 (in the El Mirage desert of California) and 2002 (at the Paramount Pictures studio in Hollywood), and he is the only photographer to have done it three times. For the 2017 edition more than 40 images were used, both portraits and ambient shots, which were taken in five locations: Berlin, Los Angeles, New York, London and the French beach resort of Le Bouquet. Fourteen actresses were Lindbergh’s subjects (here listed alphabetically): Jessica Chastain, Penélope Cruz, Nicole Kidman, Rooney Mara, Helen Mirren, Julianne Moore, Lupita Nyong’o (above), Charlotte Rampling, Léa Seydoux, Uma Thurman, Alicia Vikander, Kate Winslet, Robin Wright and Zhang Ziyi. In the “making of” video—the full-length version can be seen, above—they discuss what it’s like to have Lindbergh take your portrait. Uma Thurman says it felt “like an interview, but with a camera,” while for Penélope Cruz it was “almost like seeing into your soul.” Lindbergh explains that he wasn’t looking to create paragons of beauty in this project. “I wanted to show women in a different way,” he says. “I did this by asking actresses who have always played an important role in my life and to try and get as close to them as possible through my photos. As an artist, I feel I have a responsibility to free women from the idea of eternal youth and perfection. Society’s ideal of perfection is impossible to achieve.”