Patrick Demarchelier—that famed lensman who has shaped the way that we see fashion for more than four decades—is really not a fan of posing. The key to a strong portrait lies in the truth of the subject, he says, a certain natural quality; “for people to be who they are, to be themselves.” And on the eve of his first retrospective in the United States—more than 75 of his iconic images, varying in subject, context, and setting, from portraits and fashion to nudes and nature will premiere with a private fête tomorrow night at Christie’s, hosted by WME|IMG’s Art + Commerce to celebrate New York Fashion Week (and will run from October 2 to October 12, to coincide with the photography auctions on October 5 and 6)—the iconic photographer considers a career spent snug in the eye of the fashion industry as something of a happy accident: “It came naturally,” he says. “I didn’t think about a career. I didn’t plan it. It came to me.”
Demarchelier began his relationship with Vogue in 1974, when he was hired by Conde Nast Editorial Director Alexander Liberman, and went on to capture everyone from the supers of the nineties (Christy, Linda, Naomi, Cindy, et al) to the crew behind The September Issue—alongside a lissome, leaping Caroline Trentini, of course. “Everyone is the same to me. I photograph people. It doesn’t matter if they’re a star or not,” says Demarchelier, and to that end, his favorite image from the collection at Christie’s—actually, his favorite portrait—is not of a notable name, sublime scenery, or a particularly arresting model, but of his long-haired dachshund, Puffy. “One of my best portraits,” he exclaims. “He had no fear of the camera.” Which begs the question, how does a connoisseur of the here and the now and the always very natural feel about all the pomp and circumstance and necessary nostalgia of a retrospective? Trick question—he doesn’t. “I like to think of it as an exhibition, and not necessarily a retrospective,” says the photographer. “I like to mix pictures—old and new. I don’t like looking back, but always focus on looking to the future.” We wouldn’t expect anything less.
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