The Easel

How Irving Penn revolutionised fashion photography

Irving Penn arrived at photography after trying unsuccessfully to be a painter. Once hired by Vogue his signature style quickly emerged – striving for “simplification and elimination” and obsessive attention to detail. Add to this, of course, an ability to see an image others couldn’t. He said “Whatever the photograph … battlefield … Hollywood celebrity … images to sell soap – all of them are equally important.” More images are here.