The legacy of fashion photographer Peter Lindbergh celebrated in new book

 PETER, PAOLO ROVERSI, MOSCOW, 2010
Peter Lindbergh and Paolo Roversi, Moscow 2010 (Image credit: Igor Ganzha)

A new book is being published in honor of revolutionary German fashion photographer, Peter Lindbergh (1944 - 2019). Raw Beauty, written by Michael Benson and designed by Baron and Baron will be published to coincide with Lindbergh's upcoming last self-curated exhibition, 'Untold Stories'. 

The exhibition will be held in A Coruña, Spain, opening 4 December 2021, and running until 28 February, 2022.

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Raw Beauty is comprised of a sequence of interviews with the models, photographers, gallerists, art directors, curators and critics of whom played a key role in shaping the world of Lindbergh on his journey to becoming a renowned figure and pillar of contemporary fashion photography. The photographer and filmmaker unfortunately passed away in 2019 at the age of 74.

Peter Lindbergh and Penelope Cruz, Madrid 2019 (Image credit: © Peter Lindbergh © Hugo Mapell)

Famous for advancing the genre of fashion photography, Lindbergh has worked with a multitude of the world's most famous models and is credited with launching the era of the “top model”, shooting the first covers for American Vogue.

The result of Raw Beauty is an interconnected group of stories offering a unique insight into the relationship between subject and photographer. Many individuals when interviewed spoke of the joy felt when working with Lindbergh, and author Michael Benson states that the book comprises an "authentic set of voices" created by keeping himself away from the action process. 

Benson continues: "Peter turned out to be an interviewer’s dream. All I needed to do was to ask ‘so what was it like, working with Peter?  and the stories would come tumbling forth. Not only stories but photographs too...". The individual stories in Raw Beauty come together to create a highly personal portrait of Lindbergh as an artist who was obsessed by light and movement. 

Naomi Campbell, Ibiza, 2000 (Image credit: Peter Lindbergh (courtesy Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris))

Kate Moss, Beauduc, 1994 (Image credit: Peter Lindbergh (courtesy Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris))

Julien D'ys, Linda Evangelista, Paris, 1988 (Image credit: © Peter Lindbergh (courtesy Peter Lindbergh Foundation, Paris))

The untouched and un-filtered portrait of a model had become Lindbergh's special niche in a world of facade, he was noted for depicting true raw beauty in his work and set women free from the tyranny of looking perfect at all times. 

He worked with a Nikon F5 and simple Nikon 50mm f/1.4 or Nikon 85mm f/1.4 lens for the majority of his images throughout the 90s, as reported by Anatomy Films, and in his later years used the Nikon D4 and Nikon D5 to shoot portraits.

Poster for Peter Lindbergh exhibition (Image credit: Bolton & Quinn)

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Beth Nicholls
Staff Writer

A staff writer for Digital Camera World, Beth has an extensive background in various elements of technology with five years of experience working as a tester and sales assistant for CeX. After completing a degree in Music Journalism, followed by obtaining a Master's degree in Photography awarded by the University of Brighton, she spends her time outside of DCW as a freelance photographer specialising in live music events and band press shots under the alias 'bethshootsbands'.