On Tuesday, September 3, the renowned fashion photographer Peter Lindbergh died at the age of 74. The news was announced via his personal Instagram, where thousands reacted to the news.
Lindbergh, who was born in Germany, was one of the greats. He shot Anna Wintour’s first Vogue magazine cover in 1988. Two years later, he ushered in the era of the ’90s supermodel, when he photographed Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell, Tatjana Patitz, Christy Turlington, and Linda Evangelista for the cover of British Vogue. He wanted to “broaden” the idea of beauty, he told editor Liz Tilberis at the time, which is why he cast so many different women. He also photographed campaigns for Calvin Klein and David Yurman, and his work has been shown in museums and galleries around the world, from Gagosian Paris to the Met.
Lindbergh was known for photographing his subjects in black-and-white, capturing them in as natural a state as possible. He began his career photographing models in plain white T-shirts, for example, and was also the first photographer to shoot Pirelli calendar subjects without makeup. “Refusing to bow to glossy perfection is Peter Lindbergh’s trademark,” wrote Suzy Menkes.
Lindbergh was working up until very recently. He shot the September issue cover of British Vogue, for example, at the direction of guest editor, Duchess Meghan Markle.
“His ability to see real beauty in people, and the world, was ceaseless, and will live on through the images he created,” wrote the magazine’s editor-in-chief, Edward Enninful, on Wednesday.
The photographer is survived by his wife, Petra; his first wife, Astrid; his four sons, Benjamin, Jérémy, Simon, and Joseph; and seven grandchildren.
