This is a stunning collection of photographs
- many never before published
- celebrating the remarkable talent of Herb Ritts. Herb Ritts" traces the life & career of the iconic photographer through a compelling selection of both renowned & previously unpublished photographs & two insightful essays. Herb Ritts (1952-2002) was a Los Angeles-based photographer who established an international reputation for distinctive images of fashion models nudes & celebrity portraits. During the 1980s & 1990s Ritts was sought out by leading fashion designers such as Armani Gianfranco Ferre Donna Karan Calvin Klein Valentino & Versace as well as magazine editors from "GQ" " Rolling Stone" & " Vanity Fair" among others to lend glamour to their products & layouts. Largely self-taught Ritts developed his own style one that often made use of the California light & landscape & helped to separate his work from his New York-based peers. From the late 1970s until his untimely death from AIDS in 2002 Ritts ability to create photographs that successfully bridged the gap between art & commerce was not only a testament to the power of his imagination & technical skill but also marked the synergistic union between art popular culture & business that followed in the wake of the Pop Art movement of the 1960s & 1970s."