Shadows on the Wall

“What is merely beautiful has always bored me. I’m interested in what is powerful and real.” —Peter Lindbergh

With such credits as shooting the first American Vogue cover under Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour, bringing together for the first time a group of young women who would become the ’90s supermodels, and numerous solo exhibitions at world-renowned institutions including the Pushkin Museum in Moscow, the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing, and the Gagosian in London, Peter Lindbergh (1944–2019) was a master of his craft who made his mark in the halls of photography history.

The industry quickly became enamored with his almost anti-fashion photography, capturing the zeitgeist and the spirit of his subjects rather than pursuing today’s search for perfection, which he considered inhuman.

Handpicked from 37,000 unreleased photos from his groundbreaking 2017 Pirelli calendar shoot, Shadows on the Wall offers an intimate insight into a pool of extraordinary talent: Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore, Alicia Vikander, Charlotte Rampling, Dame Helen Mirren, Jessica Chastain, Kate Winslet, Léa Seydoux, Lupita Nyong’o, Penélope Cruz, Robin Wright, Rooney Mara, Uma Thurman, and Zhang Ziyi.

Lindbergh’s message is simple. These intimate images represent a different kind of beauty, far away from society’s obsession with youth and perfection; one which is concerned with individuality, the courage to be yourself, and your very own sensibility.