Photographer Annie Leibovitz has captured some of the most indelible magazine images in the past five decades—often for Vanity Fair. Many of those photos—from Caitlyn Jenner introducing herself to the world after transitioning to Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace—are compiled in a new book on Leibovitz’s body of work, Annie Leibovitz: Wonderland. A first look of work will be on display at a pop-up exhibition, presented by Hauser & Wirth and its publisher Phaidon. It opens September 10, and will be on view at Studio525, 525 W 24th St. New York, NY 10011 through September 15.
On Thursday evening, ahead of the show’s official opening, Vogue global editorial director and Condé Nast chief content officer Anna Wintour and Vanity Fair editor-in-chief Radhika Jones co-hosted a cocktail party at the space in honor Wonderland, where guests such as Gloria Steinem, Karen Elson, and Emily Ratajkowski, experienced the exhibition. “[The book] is a love story to fashion,” said Leibovitz in her remarks. While she also admitted she never thought of herself as a fashion photographer, she thanked Wintour for letting her enter the fashion world and for allowing to “meet subjects who I’d admired and really wanted to work with.”
Set for a November release, Wonderland showcases Leibovitz’s powerful portraits from her work at Rolling Stone in the 1970s to her work at Vogue and Vanity Fair in the 1980s, and through present day. The book features more than 340 photographs of celebrities, political leaders, and athletes dressed in designers such as Alexander McQueen and Yves Saint Laurent. There are more than 30 never-before-published images, and surprising behind-the-scenes secrets. During a Vogue 2007 story with Penélope Cruz, for example, and the Spanish bullfighter Cayetano Rivera Ordóñez, Leibovitz disclosed that he had been gored in the thigh the day before the shoot. While they were working, blood began seeping through his pants.
At the party, a bevy of well-wishers greeted Leivbovitz, while the DJ played some of the photographer’s favorites tunes songs, including cuts by Emmylou Harris and Aretha Franklin. Steinem chatted with acquaintances next to her 2018 portrait on display. The activist was photographed for a Vanity Fair piece with Naomi Wadler, a 12-year-old spokesperson for victims of gun violence, in Brooklyn.
“Being photographed by Annie, it’s total trust. Whatever she does, you know it’s going to be done right,” said Steinem, who has been shot by Leibovitz more than once. “It’s going to be authentic to the person she’s photographing.”
Across the crowded room, Elson gazed at the nearly 220 images on meticulous display. Once she saw her own portrait projected onto one of the large digital screens, she playfully posed in front of the image while her friends snapped a few candid pictures with their phones. The singer-songwriter and model has known Leibovitz for 20 years, and has been photographed numerous times. What she admires the most about Leibovitz’s portraits is her interpretive perspective on individuals. “Annie is not essentially a fashion photographer. Annie is a people photographer,” said Elson. “And like all the fashion shoots I’ve done with Annie, what she’s always wanted me to be is me, even if I’m dressed up to the nines. She’s personable and trying to capture something about the person.”
After taking a lap around the exhibition, Ratajkowski and a female friend held court at the bar. In between drinks, the actress-model shared that Leibovitz’s distinctive style and her use of bright colors, intense lighting and unusual poses, caught her attention early on as a teen.
“I grew up with MySpace and Facebook, but I remember the time before it and opening Vanity Fair or Vogue and seeing this kind of special world that you could crawl into,” recalled Ratajkowsk, who has yet to pose in front of the camera for Leibovitz. “It was really striking to me. Fashion never really got me, but those images that she took, you could kind of dive into and pretend to be a part of it. To me, that’s what makes Annie Leibovitz so special.”
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