Michael Patrick Avedon (born January 16, 1991) is an American photographer living in New York City. Avedon works commercially as a

fashion photographer Fashion photography is a genre of photography that portrays clothing and other fashion items. This sometimes includes haute couture garments. It typically consists of a fashion photographer taking pictures of a dressed model in a photographic stu ...

and makes

portraits A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face is always predominant. In arts, a portrait may be represented as half body and even full body. If the subject in full body better re ...

for his personal work – including an ongoing series of artists in their studios. Avedon began experimenting with photography in 2006, and in 2012 was named in ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

''s "30 Under 30" list of up-and-coming artists. In the spring of 2013 he graduated from the

International Center of Photography The International Center of Photography (ICP) is a photography museum and school at 84 Ludlow Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan in New York City. ICP's photographic collection, reading room, and archives are at Mana Contemporary in Jer ...

. He has worked for

Louis Vuitton Louis Vuitton Malletier SAS, commonly known as Louis Vuitton (, ), is a French Luxury goods, luxury fashion house and company founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton (designer), Louis Vuitton. The label's LV monogram appears on most of its products, ...

Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery. ...

, ''

Harper's Bazaar ''Harper's Bazaar'' (stylized as ''Harper's BAZAAR'') is an American monthly women's fashion magazine. Bazaar has been published in New York City since November 2, 1867, originally as a weekly publication entitled ''Harper's Bazar''."Corporat ...

,''

CR Fashion Book Carine Roitfeld (; born 19 September 1954) is a French fashion editor, former fashion model, and writer. She is the former editor-in-chief of ''Vogue Paris'', a position she held from 2001 to 2011. In 2012, she became founder and editor-in-chief ...

, and ''

Dazed ''Dazed'' (''Dazed & Confused'' until February 2014) is a quarterly British lifestyle magazine founded in 1991. It covers music, fashion, film, art, and literature. ''Dazed'' is published by Dazed Media, an independent media group known for produ ...

''. He is the grandson of

Richard Avedon Richard Avedon (May 15, 1923 – October 1, 2004) was an American fashion and portrait photographer. He worked for ''Harper's Bazaar'', '' Vogue'' and '' Elle'' specializing in capturing movement in still pictures of fashion, theater and ...

on his father's side, and Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan on his mother's side.

Early life

Michael Patrick Avedon was born in New York City to Maura Moynihan and John Avedon. From a young age, he was influenced by and participated in counter-culture movements such as

skateboard A skateboard is a type of sports equipment used for skateboarding. It is usually made of a specially designed 7–8-ply maple plywood deck and has polyurethane wheels attached to the underside by a pair of skateboarding trucks. The skateboard ...

ing,

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suita ...

, and

punk rock music Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

. He attended

York Preparatory School York Preparatory School, commonly referred to as York Prep School, is an independent, university-preparatory school on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York City, near Lincoln Square, Manhattan, Lincoln Square. The coeducational school prov ...

on the Upper West Side from 7th through 12th grade. After graduating from high school, Avedon spent two years studying at the

School of Visual Arts The School of Visual Arts New York City (SVA NYC) is a private for-profit art school in New York City. It was founded in 1947 and is a member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design. History This school was started by Silas ...

in downtown Manhattan. Subsequently, he transferred to the

, where he studied for an additional two years, graduating in the spring of 2013.

Work

Avedon has shot advertisements for ''Louis Vuitton'' and ''Calvin Klein'', and fashion editorials for ''Harper's Bazaar'', ''CR Fashion Book'', ''Dazed & Confused'', ''

VMAN ''VMan'' is a magazine featuring men's clothing published as an offshoot of '' V'' magazine. History and profile ''VMan'' was established in 2003, and is published quarterly by Visionaire Publishing, also responsible for ''V'' and ''Visionaire' ...

'', '' Interview Russia'', ''Out of Order'', and ''

HERO A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or Physical strength, strength. The original hero type of classical epics did such thin ...

''. In March 2012, Avedon had his first fashion spread in ''V Man'', a fashion magazine edited by Stephen Gan. His first notable commercial assignment was a series of behind the scenes photographs at the 2012

haute couture (; ; French for 'high sewing', 'high dressmaking') is the creation of exclusive custom-fitted high-end fashion design. The term ''haute couture'' generally refers to a specific type of upper garment common in Europe during the 16th to the ...

Paris Fashion Week Paris Fashion Week (, commonly ) is a series of designer presentations held semi-annually in Paris, France, with spring/summer and autumn/winter events held each year. Dates are determined by the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode. Pa ...

, commissioned by

Carine Roitfeld Carine Roitfeld (; born 19 September 1954) is a French fashion editor, former fashion model, and writer. She is the former editor-in-chief of ''Vogue Paris'', a position she held from 2001 to 2011. In 2012, she became founder and editor-in-chief ...

's ''CR Fashion Book''. Avedon was subsequently asked to shoot for the magazine's debut issue (September 2012), as well as several following issues. He maintains an ongoing working relationship with Roitfeld, and returned to Paris Fashion Week in 2013 to shoot for her magazine. Throughout 2012 and 2013 Avedon has worked closely with

Jefferson Hack Jefferson Hack (born 20 June 1971) is a British publisher. He is the co-founder, Editorial Director and CEO of Dazed Media, an independent media company that produces stories across its print, digital and video brands. The company's portfolio in ...

(founder of ''Dazed & Confused'', ''

Another Magazine ''Another Magazine'', styled ''AnOther'', is an international fashion and culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, bel ...

'' and ''

NOWNESS Nowness (stylized NOWNESS) is a digital video channel that was launched in 2010 by its founder Jefferson Hack as a brand of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE.

''), and has shot several notable celebrities for ''Dazed & Confused'', including

Greta Gerwig Greta Celeste Gerwig ( ; born August 4, 1983) is an American actress, screenwriter, and film director. Initially known for working on various mumblecore films, she has since expanded from acting in and co-writing independent films to directing ...

Nicolas Jaar Nicolas Jaar (, ; né Nicolás Jaar; born January 10, 1990) is a Chilean-American composer and musician. Among his notable works are the albums '' Space Is Only Noise'' (2011), ''Sirens'' (2016), and '' Cenizas'' (2020). He has also released th ...

, and

Damien Echols Damien Wayne Echols (born Michael Wayne Hutchison; December 11, 1974) is an American author who first became known as one of three teenagers, the West Memphis Three, convicted of a triple murder in 1994 despite the lack of physical evidence conne ...

, as well as a

Brooke Shields Brooke Christa Shields (born May 31, 1965) is an American actress. A child model starting at the age of 11 months, Shields gained widespread notoriety at age 12 for her leading role in Louis Malle's film ''Pretty Baby (1978 film), Pretty Baby ...

cover story for ''Under the Influence'', and

Naomi Campbell Naomi Elaine Campbell (born 22 May 1970) is a British supermodel. Beginning her career at the age of eight, Campbell was one of six models of her generation declared supermodels by the fashion industry and the international press. She was th ...

for ''Interview Russia''. In July 2014 Avedon shot Lottie Moss (the younger half-sister of

Kate Moss Katherine Ann Moss (born 16 January 1974) is an English model. Arriving towards the end of the "supermodel era", Moss rose to fame in the early 1990s as part of the heroin chic fashion trend. Her collaborations with Calvin Klein brought her t ...

) for ''Calvin Klein''. The shoot took place in London and featured a '90s-inspired Calvin Klein Jeans capsule collection. In ways the shoot pays homage to the iconic 1980's advertisement shot and directed by Richard Avedon for Calvin Klein, featuring model Brooke Shields. In August 2014 Avedon shot Emma Ferrer (the granddaughter of

Audrey Hepburn Audrey Kathleen Hepburn ( Ruston; 4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993) was a British actress. Recognised as a film and fashion icon, she was ranked by the American Film Institute as the third-greatest female screen legend from the Classical Holly ...

) for ''Harper's Bazaar''. The shoot took place in Florence, where Ferrer has lived for the past six years. The concept, envisioned by Bazaar's editor-in-chief

Glenda Bailey Dame Glenda Adrianne Bailey (born 16 November 1958) is a former editor-in-chief of ''Harper’s Bazaar'', a monthly fashion magazine published by the Hearst Corporation. She was in this position from May 2001 to 2020. Early life Bailey was born ...

, was to create a tribute to the many popular photographs that Richard Avedon shot of Hepburn throughout the late 1950s and early 1960s. Both the clothing and poses were largely inspired by these past works. Joanna Hillman was the fashion editor on the shoot. The October 29 – November 11, 2018 issue of ''

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

'' magazine included a portfolio of Avedon's portraits of 25 survivors of school shootings, from a 1946 shooting at the Brooklyn High School For Automotive Trades to the

Stoneman Douglas High School shooting On February 14, 2018, a mass shooting occurred when 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz opened fire on students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, part of the Miami metropolitan area, Parkland, Florida, killing 17 people and injuring 18 ot ...

Personal work

Avedon's personal work has predominantly taken the form of portrait photography. Influenced by the extensive legacy of his grandfather's work, he has shot primarily in black & white, using 35mm and medium format film. His ongoing portrait project of artists have been intimate, close-up sittings, typically conducted in the artist's studio. Artists he has photographed for the project thus far include:

Chuck Close Charles Thomas Close (July 5, 1940 – August 19, 2021) was an American painter, visual artist, and photographer who made massive-scale photorealism, photorealist and abstract portraits of himself and others. Close also created photo portraits ...

Richard Serra Richard Serra (November 2, 1938 – March 26, 2024) was an American artist known for his large-scale Abstract art, abstract sculptures made for Site-specific art, site-specific landscape, urban, and Architecture, architectural settings, a ...

Francesco Clemente Francesco Clemente (born 23 March 1952) is an Italian contemporary artist. He has lived at various times in Italy, India and New York City. Some of his work is influenced by the traditional art and culture of India. He has worked in various a ...

Peter Beard Peter Hill Beard (January 22, 1938 – March 31 / April 19, 2020) was an American artist, photographer, diarist, and writer who lived and worked in New York City, Montauk, Long Island and Kenya. His photographs of Africa, African animals ...

Julian Schnabel Julian Schnabel (born October 26, 1951) is an American painter and filmmaker. In the 1980s, he received international attention for his "plate paintings"—with broken ceramic plates set onto large-scale paintings. Since the 1990s, he has been a ...

, and

Terence Koh Terence Koh (born 1977 in Beijing, China ) is a Canadian artist who has also worked under the alias "asianpunkboy". The artist's work spans a range of media, including drawing, sculpture, video, performance, and the internet. Originally workin ...

. His maternal grandmother Elizabeth Moynihan has also been a recurring subject in his personal work. Avedon describes his work as "a mix of movement and energy".

References

External links

Michael Avedon Photography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Avedon, Michael 1991 births Living people Photographers from New York City American people of Irish descent American people of Russian-Jewish descent School of Visual Arts alumni 21st-century American photographers