Brian Bowen Smith is an American commercial and

fine-art In European academic traditions, fine art (or, fine arts) is made primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from popular art, decorative art or applied art, which also either serve some practical function (such as p ...

photographer known for his celebrity portraits. He was mentored by

Herb Ritts Herbert Ritts Jr. (August 13, 1952 – December 26, 2002) was an American fashion photographer and director known for his photographs of celebrities, models, and other cultural figures throughout the 1980s and 1990s. His work concentrated on b ...

who helped him discover his own personal photographic style.

Life and career

Early life

Bowen Smith was born and raised in

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States. With a population of 148,620 and a Syracuse metropolitan area, metropolitan area of 662,057, it is the fifth-most populated city and 13 ...

. Before establishing his photography career, Bowen Smith was as an athlete and actor before meeting iconic American fashion photographer Herb Ritts. Bowen Smith worked as his assistant before pursuing his own photography career.

Commercial career

Bowen Smith’s professional career spans editorial, advertising, fashion, and entertainment photography. He is known for his portraits of celebrities featured on the covers of magazines. His work has been featured in publications such as ''Vanity Fair'', ''Esquire'', ''Self'', '' GQ'', and ''Details''. Besides editorial work, Bowen Smith has photographed key art for multiple

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

series including ''

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt ''Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt'' is an American sitcom created by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock, starring Ellie Kemper in the title role. It premiered on March 6, 2015, on Netflix and ran for four seasons, ending on January 25, 2019. An interactiv ...

'', ''

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'', ''

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'', and ''

The Do Over ''The Do-Over'' is a 2016 American buddy action comedy film directed by Steve Brill, and written by Kevin Barnett and Chris Pappas. The movie follows Charlie ( David Spade) and Max (Adam Sandler) after Max fakes their deaths in order to start ...

''. Additional television photography credits include '' The Voice'', ''

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'', ''

Ray Donovan ''Ray Donovan'' is an American crime drama television series created by Ann Biderman for Showtime. The drama, starring Liev Schreiber in the title role, is set primarily in Los Angeles (during seasons 1–5) and in New York City (during seaso ...

'', ''Shameless'', and ''

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''. Bowen Smith has also photographed movie posters and advertisements for multiple major motion pictures. Recent credits include ''The Intern'' starring

Robert De Niro Robert Anthony De Niro ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor, director, and film producer. He is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of List of awards and ...

and

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and ''

Central Intelligence ''Central Intelligence'' is a 2016 American buddy action comedy film directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber and written by Thurber, Ike Barinholtz and David Stassen. The film stars Kevin Hart and Dwayne Johnson as two old high school classmates ...

'' starring

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and

Kevin Hart Kevin Darnell Hart (born July 6, 1979) is an American comedian and actor. The accolades he has received include the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor and nominations for two Grammy Awards and four Primetime Emmy Awards. After winning se ...

. He has also worked with several fashion brands including

Marc Jacobs Marc Jacobs (born April 9, 1963) is an American fashion designer. He is the head designer for his own fashion label, Marc Jacobs, and formerly Marc by Marc Jacobs, a diffusion line, which was produced for approximately 15 years, before it was d ...

. Projects with Marc Jacobs include a campaign to raise awareness of skin cancer and multiple advertising campaigns. Marc Jacobs also co-hosted the launch party of Bowen Smith’s 2013 book titled ''Projects''. ''Projects'' features a collection of celebrity portraits taken throughout his career including those of

Jennifer Aniston Jennifer Joanna Aniston (born February 11, 1969) is an American actress. She rose to international fame for her role as Rachel Green on the television sitcom ''Friends'' from 1994 to 2004, which earned her Primetime Emmy, Golden Globe, and Scr ...

Cindy Crawford Cynthia Ann Crawford (born February 20, 1966) is an American model. During the 1980s and 1990s, she was among the most popular supermodels and a ubiquitous presence on magazine covers and runways, as well as fashion campaigns. She subsequently ...

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, and

Selma Blair Selma Blair (born Selma Blair Beitner; June 23, 1972) is an American actress. She is known for her roles in '' Cruel Intentions'', '' Legally Blonde'', '' The Sweetest Thing'', and the ''Hellboy'' franchise. Blair, born in Southfield, Michigan ...

Fine-Art career

Beyond commercial photography, Bowen Smith made his fine-art debut in October 2014 with a collection called ''Wildlife''. This solo collection was on display at De Re Gallery in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

and featured nude images of women wearing children’s animal masks. The identities of these women were kept anonymous allowing celebrities and models to participate. In October 2015, Smith released a collection of nude photographs printed on metallic canvas called the ''Metallic Series''.

Personal

Bowen Smith lives with his wife and son in Los Angeles.

Editorial covers

2013

Miley Cyrus Miley Ray Cyrus ( , born Destiny Hope Cyrus, November 23, 1992) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and director. Regarded as a contemporary pop icon, Cyrus has been recognized for her evolving artistry and image reinventions. She is ...

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Essence Essence () has various meanings and uses for different thinkers and in different contexts. It is used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property (philosophy), property or set of properties or attributes that make an entity the ...

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Women’s Health Women's health is an example of population health, where health is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity". Often treated ...

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2014

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on Manhattan Magazine

Chris Pine Christopher Whitelaw Pine (born August 26, 1980) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' reboot film series (2009–2016) and Steve Trevor in the DC Extended Universe films ''Wonder Woman'' ...

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on Manhattan Magazine

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on Gotham

Channing Tatum Channing Matthew Tatum (born April 26, 1980) is an American actor and producer. He made his film debut in the drama ''Coach Carter'' (2005), and had his Breakthrough role, breakthrough with the sports comedy film ''She's the Man'' (2006) and t ...

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on Los Angeles Confidential

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UK 2015

Gina Rodriguez Gina Alexis Rodriguez (born July 30, 1984) is an American actress. She is known for her leading role as Jane Villanueva in The CW satirical romantic dramedy series ''Jane the Virgin'' (2014–2019), for which she received a Golden Globe Award f ...

on winter issue of

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Latino

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on Angeleno Magazine

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Japan

Julianne Moore Julie Anne Smith (born December 3, 1960), known professionally as Julianne Moore, is an American actress and children's author. Prolific in film since the early 1990s, she is known for her portrayals of emotionally troubled women in independent ...

on Angeleno Magazine

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2016
Samuel L Jackson on Rhapsody Magazine

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on Angeleno Magazine

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on Glamour Mexico

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on GQ Germany

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on Stylist

on GQ

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2022

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Album covers

2013

Incubus An Incubus () is a demon, male demon in human form in folklore that seeks to have Sexuality in Christian demonology, sexual intercourse with sleeping women; the corresponding spirit in female form is called a succubus. Parallels exist in many c ...

- ''

Trust Fall (Side A) ''Trust Fall (Side A)'' is a four-track EP by alternative rock band Incubus, released in 2015 on Island Records. It was the first release from the band since their 2011 album, '' If Not Now, When?''. '' Trust Fall (Side B)'', a follow-up to t ...

'' 2023

– ''

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References

External links

Official Website

bbs drivebys

Brian Bowen Smith Overview - Copious Management

Fundamentals of Professional Photography with Brian Bowen Smith
youtube
Brian Bowen Smith: Silencing the Creative Critic
youtube {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Brian Bowen Living people American photographers People from Syracuse, New York Year of birth missing (living people)