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The
thirty-fifth edition of “The Cal”, the first ever
realised in Asia, is an exceptional visiting card to
bring the world of Pirelli to the public of the Orient.
The 2008
Calendar is set entirely in Shanghai: the picturesque
streets of the old French Concession, the splendid gardens
of the former British Legation, the mysterious and sensual
atmosphere of forbidden China, the convulsive Nanjing Road
and the characteristic tea houses constitute the background
for the camera shots that will grace the coming months.
The twenty-three
intense portraits (two for each month; August has just one)
recount the pomp of ancient China, with its splendor and the
colours in which the Oriental myth of female beauty –
perfection, purity, grace - is searched out. “Very often I
find Western people seem to go for the more cliché Chinese
faces: long hair, slanted eyes. All that has changed I
think. Many Chinese women are graceful; I think we have an
inner grace that’s more rare than you find in the West,”
affirmed Maggie Cheung, the well-known Chinese actress.
Patrick
Demarchelier, the influential maestro of portrait
photography, who for the second time authors the celebrated
almanac (his first Pirelli Calendar was shot in 2005 in Rio
de Janeiro, Brazil) said: “The casting was a fascinating mix
between the West and the Orient: an interesting group of
faces.” Shooting last April kept eleven models and actresses
occupied for ten days of intense work that involved a troupe
of more than 40 people.
The leading
ladies of this edition are rising stars such as Agyness
Deane and Lily Donaldson (UK), Doutzen Kroes (the
Netherlands), Catherine Mc Neil and Gemma Ward (Australia),
Sasha Pivovarova (Russia), Coco Rocha (Ireland) and Caroline
Trentini (Brazil). The Calendar also features Chinese
beauties like Mo Wan Dan and Du Juan and one name in
particular stands out: Maggie Cheung, the celebrated actress
and Asian beauty, known internationally for her acting in
Police Story (1985), Super Cop (1992), Actress (1992),
Chinese Box (1997), In the Mood for Love (2000) Hero (2003).
The official
unveiling of the new Calendar occurs just a few days after
the opening of the second Pirelli tyre plant in the Shandong
Province. China and the other Asian markets are, in fact,
the new frontiers for international expansion of the Group,
which is investing and growing in order to take advantage of
the extraordinary business opportunities in the area.
“The Cal,” which
has always been an artistic synthesis bringing together
innovation, respect for values, and tradition, also
expresses Pirelli’s capacity to adapt to and integrate
different cultures while at the same time affirming the
qualities and the glamour of what being Italian is all
about.
In late
November, the book “The Complete Works: The Pirelli Calendar
1964-2007,” published by Mondadori, will be distributed in
bookstores worldwide. The book represents an important
international publishing event and involves seven foreign
co-publishers (Flammarion for France, Schirmer & Mosel for
Germany, Rizzoli USA for the US and Canada, Thames & Hudson
for the United Kingdom, South Africa, Australia, and other
world markets, Magma for Russia, Rebis for Poland, and
Slovart for the Czech Republic). The book is the result of a
long, meticulous project of research and recovery of
original materials. From the sixties to today, the reader
takes a passionate excursion through the evolution of
fashion, trends, and customs of the last 40 years, in
harmony with the evolution of the language of Pirelli’s
communication.
Patrick
Demarchelier
Patrick
Demarchelier’s career began on his seventeenth birthday when
his step-father gave him a gift that would change his life:
a camera. Three years later at the age of twenty Patrick
moved from a French Port called Le Havre to Paris.
Patrick’s photographic style caught the eye of Alexander
Liberman, the creative director at Vogue. By 1974 Patrick
was working for American Vogue and a year later he moved to
New York where he has lived ever since.
Patrick has
photographed stories for the world’s top fashion
publications including American Vogue, French Vogue, British
Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, and Vanity Fair. He has covers to
his credit that number in the thousands and recently
completed a contract with Hearst Publications which lasted
just over a decade. He is currently under contract with
Conde Nast. When this contract was signed in May 2004,
Patrick was very excited to be back at Conde Nast and
remarked “It feels like coming home.”
While Patrick’s
career in the fashion sphere of photography is certainly
legendary, his fine art photographs have also gained him
immense success and prestige. He held his first one-man
show in 1996 at the famed SoHo gallery of Tony Shafrazi. He
then went on to exhibit in another single-artist show at the
Museum of Contemporary Art in Monterey Mexico in 1998,
followed by another solo exhibition at the Italian Museum of
Modern Art (PAC) in Milan in 2000. In 2001, he again
exhibited at the Tony Shafrazi Gallery, and in 2005 held an
exhibition at the Young Gallery in Belgium. Plans for
future exhibitions are in the works for Moscow, Paris,
London, and Brazil.
In 1989 Patrick
Demarchelier became, by request, Her Royal Highness Princess
Diana’s official photographer. This was historic, as
Patrick was the first non-Brit to photograph the royal
family. This relationship lasted until her untimely death
in 1997.
In addition to
fashion and fine art, Patrick has shot some of the world’s
most memorable fashion and beauty campaigns, as well as
commercials for clients such as Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren,
Versace, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Revlon, Maybelline, Ann
Taylor, Armani, Carolina Herrera, Elizabeth Arden, Lancome,
Tommy Hilfiger, BCBG, and Guerlain.
He has
additionally been commissioned to shoot publicity campaigns
and posters for many of Hollywood’s best known titles,
“James Bond: Die Another Day,” “Coyote Ugly,” “Sex and the
City,” “Bullworth,” “Extreme Measures,” “A Love Affair,”
“Serving Sara,” “Far & Away,” “Mad Dog and Glory,” “Bugsy,”
“Dick Tracy,” “Love Field,” “She Devil,” “Lemon Sisters,”
“Listen Up Now,” “Mystic Pizza,” “Baby Boom,” “Something
Wild,” “Ishtar,” “Roll-Over,” “The Believers,” “Reds,” “Wet
Gold,” “Staying Alive,” “Blow Out,” “Endless Love,” “Blue
Lagoon,” and the classic documentary biography of Quincy
Jones.
Several of the
world’s top musical performers have also trusted Patrick to
create the images seen on the covers of their albums. The
exclusive list includes Elton John, Celine Dion, Britney
Spears, Janet Jackson’s “Janet,” and Mariah Carey for both
“Butterfly” and “Emotions”. Billy Joel also sought Patrick
to shoot the cover of “River of Dreams” and his “Greatest
Hits.” He also created the memorable covers for Madonna’s
“Bedtime Stories” and “I’m Breathless.” Patrick also shot,
for the legendary Quincy Jones, the cover for “Listen Up
Now.”
Still residing
in New York, with his wife and three sons, Patrick
Demarchelier continues to create images that keep him
positioned at the very top of his field.
Maggie Cheung
One of the
world's most admired and respected actresses, Maggie
Cheung's remarkable talent has allowed her to transcend the
Hong Kong film industry and become a major figure in
international cinema.
Her first
recognition as a powerful dramatic actress came when Wong
Kar-Wai cast her in the 1988 crime drama, "As Tears Go By."
That success led to another acclaimed collaboration with
Wong Kar-Wai in 1994's "Ashes of Time." She broke through to
an international audience in 1996 in Olivier Assayas' "Irma
Vep." A year later, she starred in her first English
language film, Wayne Wang's "Chinese Box," and in the
romantic comedy, "Comrades, Almost a Love Story," playing
one of a pair of lovers kept apart by fate for ten years. In
2000, Cheung was once again Wong Kar-Wai's muse, earning
rapturous worldwide reviews in the international hit, "In
the Mood for Love." Her next film, Zhang Yimou's "Hero", was
a major crowd-pleaser and another worldwide success. The
crowning moment of her career to date followed with an
extraordinary performance in Assayas' "Clean", for which she
was named best actress at the 2004 Cannes Film
Festival.
Agyness Deane
Born in
Manchester, England and now living in New York City, Agyness
entered the fashion business with the grace of a seasoned
performer. A fresh British face with a strong personal style
and a musical influence, she made a name for herself
quickly. She has shot with such famed photographers as
Steven Meisel, Mario Testino, Bruce Weber, Dan Jackson, Nick
Knight, Patrick Demarchelier, and Mert Alas and Marcus
Piggott; for such publications as American, Italian,
British, Japanese Vogue and Pop magazine.
Agyness appeared
on the November 2006 cover of Italian Vogue with an inside
story as well, both shot by Steven Meisel, and on the June
2007 cover of British Vogue shot by Nick Knight. Agyness is
one of the ten models on the May 2007 cover of American
Vogue, crowning her one of “The World’s Next Top Models”
shot by Steven Meisel.
Her show roster
is just as impressive with Anna Sui, Marc by Marc Jacobs,
Michael Kors, Zac Posen, Proenza Schouler, Narcisco
Rodriguez, Luella Bartley, DKNY, Miss Sixty, Giles Deacon,
Dolce & Gabbana, Versace, Alberta Ferreti, Belstaff, Jean
Paul Gaultier, Chanel, Christian Dior, Karl Lagerfeld, John
Galliano, Lanvin, and Hermes. She has been the face of
Armani, for fashion and accessories, for two seasons, shot
by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott, Mulberry with Steven Meisel,
and Galliano shot by Julien D’Ys as well as for the Burberry
campaign with Mario Testino. Agyness was the only model
highlighted in the 2007 CFDA designer nominee film shot by
Nick Knight and whilst shooting it was broadcast live on
showstudio.com.
Lily Donaldson
Lily Donaldson
hails from London, England. She was spotted by a model scout
while shopping with friends in Camden Market at the age of
16. Lily made her British Vogue Debut in 2004, shot by Mario
Testino. She has worked with top photographers including
Steven Meisel, Michael Thompson, Mario Testino, Patrick
Demarchelier, Craig McDean, Terry Richardson, Solve Sundsbo,
Inez and Vinoodh, and Steven Klein.
Lily has graced
the covers of Numero, I-D, Vogue (Italian, Chinese, and
Japanese) and was recently featured on the cover of American
Vogue as one of the world’s next top models. She has
recently walked the runway for designers such as J. Mendel,
Zach Posen, Yves Saint Laurent, Louis Vuitton, Givenchy,
Calvin Klein, Anna Sui, Derek Lam, Marc Jacobs, Oscar De La
Rental, Chanel, Carolina Herrera, Valentino, Donna Karin and
Ralph Lauren. Her top advertisement campaigns include Dolce
and Gabbana, Dior, Miss Dior Cherie, Mulberry, and Jill
Sander. She can currently be seen in the advertisements for
Burberry and Max Mara. She was nominated for Model of the
Year at the British Fashion Awards in 2005.
Du Juan
Du Juan, whose
name has two meanings (the Azalea flower and the Cuckoo
bird), was the first Asian model to grace the cover of
French Vogue. Du Juan studied dance and traditional opera at
the prestigious Shanghai Dance School from the age of
eight. When she grew too tall for ballet she entered a
national modelling competition where she took the top
prize. Soon after she was awarded “Model of the Year” at
the 2004 China Fashion Awards and named “China’s Top 10
Model” by the China Fashion Federation. Shanghai Tang, the
first Chinese global luxury brand and Lane Crawford, Asia’s
premier luxury retail giant, both signed her on for their
advertising campaigns and since 2005 she has been a quality
ambassador for Perles de Tahiti.
Du Juan debuted
at the Spring 2006 Haute Couture shows in Paris where she
walked for top design houses – Chanel, Valentino, Givenchy,
Jean Paul Gaultier and Anne Valerie Hash. She has worked
with renowned photographers such as Peter Lindbergh, Patrick
Demarchelier, Mario Testino, Mert and Marcus, David Sims,
Paolo Roversi, Mario Sorrenti, Karl Lagerfeld, Juergen
Teller and Craig McDean. She is also featured regularly in
such influential magazines as French Vogue, Italian Vogue, W
and Allure. Du Juan features frequently in China Vogue, with
three covers including the inaugural issue and at least one
major fashion editorial in every single issue since the
launch of the magazine in September 2005.
In the Fall of
2006 she walked down 43 runways for top brands such as Louis
Vuitton, Yves Saint Laurent, Roberto Cavalli, Hermes, Kenzo,
Bottega Veneta, Emmanuel Ungaro, Dries Van Noten, Oscar De
La Renta and Bagley Miswchka. Style.com named her one of
its top ten models of the season. She has appeared in global
advertising campaigns for five major international brands –
Louis Vuitton, Yves Saint Laurent, Roberto Cavalli, Gap and
Swarovski.
Doutzen Kroes
Doutzen grew up
in a rural Dutch village of just over 1500 people. The elder
of two sisters who would ride their bikes 2 hours to and
from school daily, she randomly sent pictures to a modelling
agency hoping to make some extra pocket money. The agency
immediately signed her on, and she began modelling as a
weekend and holiday part-time job.
After completing
her studies and moving to New York City to pursue a
modelling career full time, Doutzen began appearing on the
runways in New York, London, Paris and Milan. She has been
featured on the covers of Italian, German and Japanese
Vogue, Numero, Dazed and Confused, while working
consistently with the industry’s top photographers including
Steven Meisel, Inez Van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin,
Patrick Demarchelier, Craig McDean, Glen Luchford, Daniel
Jackson, Solve Sundsbo and Terry Tsiolis. Doutzen has shot
campaigns for Valentino, Calvin Klein, Dolce & Gabbana,
Calvin Klein’s fragrance Eternity and is under contract with
L’Oreal. She is also involved with non-profit work, most
notably with the World Wildlife Fund, and hopes to work with
humanitarian causes in the future.
Catherine McNeil
Brisbane-born
Catherine McNeil won the Australian Girlfriend/CoverGirl
model search in 2003 at age 14 and then worked for three
years in Australia before being sent by a Paris agency to
meet photographer Mario Testino. Testino signed her on to an
exclusive six-month contract and photographed her for
British and French Vogue. Then in 2007 she appeared on the
summer cover of V magazine, which voted her the next
supermodel to watch. She appeared in the Dolce & Gabbana
pre-fall campaign and was the face of the fall Hugo Boss and
Donna Karan campaigns. She appeared in the fall Versace
campaign alongside Kate Moss, and then opened the fall
Alexander McQueen, Alessandro Dell’Acqua, Givenchy, and
Missoni shows in Paris and Milan.
In March 2007
the New York Times published an article about her:
“Fashion’s Latest Crush”. In June she appeared on the cover
of French Vogue, and in September she was named one of
British Vogue’s Head Girls, the models to watch for in the
upcoming season. She opened the Carolina Herrera, Zac Posen,
Thakoon and Preen spring shows in New York, and closed the
Christian Dior show in Paris.
Mo Wandan
Mo Wandan was
born in Guangdong Province, China. She trained at an
athletic school in track and field, encouraged due to her
height, but had to quit after injuring her leg. She
participated in the China Model Star Contest in 2004, won,
and was quickly signed on by a top agency. Within a year she
was appearing in Elle, Marie-Claire, Moderne, Harper’s
Bazaar, and Vogue. In 2006 Mo won the Leika prize, making
her the leading Chinese model, and was invited to
participate in Milan and Paris fashion shows. Mo has walked
the runway for Dior, Armani, and Krizia and opened the
Roccobarocco show in Milan. She posed for fashion magazine
French wearing John Galliano. She is considered a rising
star in Europe.
Sasha
Pivovarova
Sasha Pivovarova
was born in Moscow and studied art and art history at the
University of Moscow and the St Petersburg New Academy of
Fine Art. She began modelling in February 2005 when a
photographer friend from New York City introduced her to IMG.
Two weeks later she opened for the Prada show in Milan, and
within a year had appeared on two Italian Vogue covers. She
has appeared in American Vogue, Italian Vogue, French Vogue,
British Vogue, Japanese Vogue, Chinese Vogue, W, V Magazine,
POP and Numero. She has worked with such renowned
photographers as Steven Meisel, Peter Lindbergh, Michael
Thompson, Mario Sorrenti, Nathaniel Goldberg, Craig McDean,
Glen Lutchford, Greg Kadel, Willy Van Der Peter and Paolo
Roversi.
Sasha maintains
one of the longest running Prada exclusives, going on 5
seasons, and is also the face of Armani cosmetics. Sasha has
walked the runway for top designers, including Prada, Gucci,
Chanel, Alexander McQueen, Christian Dior, Calvin Klein,
Donna Karan, Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs, Ralph Lauren,
Chloe, Valentino, Givenchy, Jean Paul Gaultier, Miu Miu,
Hermes, Kenzo, Victor and Rolf, Dolce and Gabbana,
Balenciaga, Zac Pozen, Fendi and Yohji Yamamoto. Sasha
continues to sketch and paint, and her work has been
featured in French Vogue among other high calibre editorial
magazines.
Coco Rocha
Coco Rocha is a
professional Canadian Irish dancer turned supermodel. After
years of practising and performing, Coco’s world changed
when a model scout approached her at a competition. Coco
came to New York and met world-renowned photographer Steven
Meisel, who booked her for the March 2006 issue of Vogue
Italia. Coco landed the March 2006 cover and there began
her start into fashion history. Coco has appeared on the
runways for Marc Jacobs, Versace, Prada, Miu Miu, Louis
Vuitton, Anna Sui, Dolce & Gabbana, Chanel, Balenciaga and
countless others. Coco opened the fall 2007 Jean Paul
Gaultier show by performing an Irish dance down the runway.
She has appeared in top fashion magazines such as Vogue (US,
Paris, Italia, Nkppon, British and Korea), Harper’s Bazaar,
W, Numero, Another, V, ID and Dazed and Confused and has
worked with leading photographers such as David Sims, Craig
McDean, Greg Kadel, Patrick Demarchelier, Mario Sorrenti,
Inez & Vinoodh, Arthur Elgort, Nick Knight and Peter
Lindbergh. She also appeared on the cover of the 2006 TIME
Style&Design issue with Du Juan. A resident of New York
City, Coco spends her free time with her family,
volunteering for charities such as the Children’s Aid
Society and Irish dancing.
Caroline
Trentini
Caroline
Trentini is a Brazilian model of Italian and German descent.
At the tender age of thirteen, the blond-haired, green-eyed
beauty was discovered and soon she moved to Sao Paulo, the
common destination for young Brazilian models. Her
breakthrough came when Marc Jacobs cast her in his “Marc” by
Marc Jacobs ad campaign. In 2004 she was photographed
topless by Steven Klein (surrounded by meat), for a US Vogue
magazine editorial and became a vegetarian thereafter. She
has appeared on the covers of Elle, Harper’s Bazaar and
Vogue, and is the face of Gucci Cruise and Oscar de la Renta.
She has walked the runway for Valentino, Versace, Chanel,
Christian Dior, Oscar de la Renta, Ralph Lauren, Calvin
Klein and Dolce & Gabbana, among others.
Gemma Ward
Gemma Ward was
born and raised in Perth, Australia, daughter of a doctor
and a nurse. Gemma was first discovered while accompanying
a friend to a modelling contest. The judges asked her to
enter and shortly after that she was signed on by a local
agency in her hometown where she began her stellar modelling
career.
Gemma’s big
break came when she was sent to casting director Russell
Marsh, who booked her to appear in Prada’s Spring 2002
runway show in Milan. Then came her first two major
advertising campaigns, shooting Versus with photographer
Steven Meisel and Jill Stuart with Mario Sorrenti. Since
them Gemma has appeared in campaigns for Jil Sander,Y-3,
Yhoji Yamamoto, Balenciaga, Yves Saint Laurent, Valentino,
Calvin Klein, Burberry, Dolce and Gabbana, Karl Lagerfeld
and two seasons in a row for Prada. She can currently be
seen in campaigns for Dior, Louis Vuitton and Karl
Lagerfeld. Gemma was recently the face of Calvin Klein’s
fragrance Obsession Night and can currently be seen in Kose
Cosmetic ads. In addition, Gemma is featured in the most
recent Swarovski jewellry campaign.
Top fashion
magazines feature Gemma on a regular basis. She has
appeared on the covers and inside pages of Vogue (Italian,
British, French, Australian and Japanese), W, Time, i-D,
Numero, Harper’s Bazaar and PoP. Gemma has also worked
with the industries’ most renowned photographers including
Mario Sorrenti, Nick Knight, Craig Mcdean, Annie Leibovitz,
Irving Penn, Paolo Roversi, Inez & Vinoodh, Steven Meisel
and Patrick Demarchelier. In addition to Gemma’s modelling
success she was featured in singer John Mayer’s music video,
“Daughters”. More recently Gemma made her feature debut
opposite Liv Tyler in the suspense thriller “The Stranger”.
Gemma just finished shooting “Black Balloon”, a
heart-warming drama starring Toni Collete.
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