If you’ve ever cracked a couture magazine, you’re familiar with Patrick Demarchelier. His sensual yet kinetic point of view graces the pages of Vogue, French Vogue, British Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, and Vanity Fair beginning in 1974, securing his status as fashion photography’s own personal Jesus.
Not that we’d ever suggest his work is graying around the temples. On the contrary – his images are consistently on the steamy side of sexy, and from February 8 through April 24, it’s on display at Staley-Wise Gallery in New York.
Time in the globe’s most prominent fashion cities seasons Demarchelier’s work and keeps it as fresh as the runway itself. He has the unique ability to identify the precise moment – down to the millisecond – when he captured the right shot. His portraits of Kate, Gisele, Christy, and the other original Supers redefine “picture perfect” such that it’s not about the model looking on point, but rather about flawless timing.
It’s one thing to photograph a gorgeous model in the nude; it’s another to tantalize your audience with the idea that maybe (by some divine nip slip) they’re doing more than looking – they’re connecting with said model. To this we invite you, in the words of Depeche Mode, reach out and touch faith.
Patrick Demarchelier. Princess Diana, 1995. Courtesy Staley-Wise Gallery, New York
Patrick Demarchelier. Christian Dior Sonnet dress, Autumn – Winter 1952 Haute Couture Collection, 2013. Courtesy Staley-Wise Gallery, New York
