source: mariotestino
Mario Testino OBE is widely regarded as one of the most influential fashion and portrait photographers of our times. His photographs have been published internationally in magazines such as Vogue, V Magazine and Vanity Fair. He has contributed to the success of leading fashion and beauty houses, creating emblematic images for brands from Gucci, Burberry, Versace and Michael Kors to Chanel, Estée Lauder and Lancôme.

Alongside his 40-year practice as a photographer, Testino has realised a body of work as a creative director, guest editor, museum founder, art collector/collaborator and entrepreneur. In 2007, at the request of his clients to provide full creative direction services, he formed MARIOTESTINO+ which today is a growing team of individuals who support Testino to realise the breadth of his creative output.

Born in Lima in 1954 to a traditional Catholic family, remote from the worlds of fashion and Hollywood, Testino moved from Peru to London in 1976. It was during apprenticeships at the studios of John Vickers and Paul Nugent that he made his first attempts as a photographer, inspired by how photography masters documented the society of their times: “I tried to emulate the English – the Mitford sisters, Stephen Tennant and Cecil Beaton.” His career began tentatively with a commission to photograph a girl’s haircut for British Vogue. The girl in the picture was stylist Lucinda Chambers and the shoot sparked a personal friendship and professional partnership that has lasted to this day. During the early nineties, Testino looked to his experience growing up in Peru and his long teenage summers in Brazil for inspiration, which helped him to create a unique and personal photographic language. “I noticed an evolution in my work…when I tried to recreate my youth in pictures.” Testino’s is an artistic vocabulary that transgresses genders, mixes masculinity and femininity and suggests sensuality rather than sexuality. Suzy Menkes, Vogue’s International Editor explains, “Testino’s skill is first and foremost to catch the moment and to bring out the humanity in his subjects.” Testino’s subjects appear confidently alive; he captures their energy by creating an openness and intimacy with them. Known for the extraordinary way in which he can capture the most private of moments, Testino’s spontaneous, intimate portraits offer the viewer new perspectives on famous faces, often establishing new fashion icons. He has documented subjects from A-list stars, muses, supermodels and artists, to subjects that he has encountered throughout his travels, from magnificent cities by night to mysterious landscapes and private soirees.

Testino was nicknamed the “John Singer Sargent of our times” by Terence Pepper, photography curator at The National Portrait Gallery in London. The Gallery’s 2002 Portraits exhibition attracted more visitors than any other show in the museum’s history at the time. Charles Saumarez Smith, then director of the NPG, compared Testino to court artists and portraitists from Holbein to Reynolds. “There is a strong relationship between Mario’s work and the general tradition of portrait artists. Just like court artists in the past, he works to a tight timetable and significant commercial constraints.”

One of Testino’s most memorable sittings to this day is his series with Diana, Princess of Wales. Commissioned for Vanity Fair in 1997, he said: “One of my greatest experiences in life was photographing Princess Diana. It’s not only that the experience itself was amazing, but she opened a door for me because I then started photographing the royal families of Europe extensively…this brings out my love for tradition, for a way of showing family and the longevity of people. He has photographed many royals including The Prince of Wales, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Harry, the King and Queen of Jordan and King and Queen of the Netherlands, among others.

Testino’s work has been exhibited at museums around the world, among them the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston (In Your Face, 2012), the Shanghai Art Museum (Private View, 2012), Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid (Todo o Nada, 2010), the Metropolitan Museum in Tokyo (Portraits, 2004) and Foam in Amsterdam (Portraits, 2003). Solo exhibitions of his work have been presented at galleries such as Mary Boone Gallery in New York, Phillips de Pury in London, Yvon Lambert in Paris and Timothy Taylor in London. More than sixteen books have been published on his work including Portraits (National Portrait Gallery, 2002), Let Me In! (Taschen, 2007), In Your Face (Taschen, 2012) and SIR (Taschen, 2015).

His growing personal collection of artworks ranging from painting to sculpture and photography has also been the subject of numerous shows. Testino’s relationship with fine art developed after frequent visits to galleries and artist’s studios. He said: “Just as photography is a vehicle for me to live a new moment, to go to a new place, meet a new person and so on, art is a process of encounter and discovery. The display of art for me is not just about seeing the work isolated in a white cube. It’s also about engaging with the art – and sometimes the artist – to make something new.” He has collaborated in the creation of some unique works with artists such as Keith Haring, Vik Muniz, John Currin and Julian Schnabel.

Awarded the Order of the British Empire in 2013 in recognition of his career and charity work, in 2010 he was also appointed one of the highest honours in his native country, The Grand Cross Order of Merit in Peru, and became President of the Board of World Monuments Fund Peru in 2014. He has worked with Save the Children, amfAR, The Elton John Aids Foundation and CLIC Sargent for children with cancer. The arts are a source of joy to Testino to the extent that in 2012 he opened a non-profit museum in Lima. MATE – Museo Mario Testino was established to contribute to Peru through the cultivation and promotion of culture and heritage. For Testino, art is never static. It is something to be appreciated and collected as fragments that make up a greater mental library: a library that is in constant flow.
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source: voguefr
Né au Pérou, Mario Testino a étudié à l’Université de San Diego avant de s’installer à Londres au milieu des années 70. Il est depuis devenu l’un des plus grands photographes de mode, et un portraitiste de célébrités régulièrement sollicité par les titres les plus importants de la presse magazine (Vogue, Vanity Fair, V Magazine) et de nombreuses maisons de mode et de beauté.
Auteur de plusieurs livres, Mario Testino a été exposé dans différents musées, parmi lesquels la National Portrait Gallery de Londres, le Musée Thyssen Bornemiza de Madrid, FOAM à Amsterdam. Très connu pour ses portraits plein de spontanéité de la Princesse Diana, réunis dans un beau livre préfacé par Graydon Carter, il est toujours proche de nombreuses têtes couronnées – à commencer par les Princes Harry et William d’Angleterre – qu’il photographie régulièrement. Il a été le seul photographe autorisé à couvrir à l’été 2011 le mariage de Kate Moss, dont il est un complice de longue date, et de Jamie Hince.
Engagé dans de nombreuses causes humanitaires, parmi lesquelles la Elton John Aids Foundation, Aid for Aids, Life Ball, the Naked Heart Foundation, l’amfAR et Women to Women, Mario Testino est Doctor Emeritus de l’University of the Arts de Londres. Il a reçu un Rodeo Drive Walk of Style Award, la médaille Tiradentes de la ville de Rio de Janerio. Il appartient également à l’Ordre du Mérite de sa ville natale de Lima, où il garde toujours une maison.
Mario Testino est l’invité d’honneur du numéro d’avril 2013 de Vogue Paris spécial Pérou. Pour faire découvrir les paysages enivrants et contrastés de son pays natal, le photographe a imaginé un triptyque mode haut en couleurs.
En octobre 2013, cap sur Monaco, la perle de la Riviera française où viennent s’amarrer au fil de l’année les plus beaux bateaux de la Méditerranée. C’est d’ailleurs à bord de l’un de ces mastodontes des mers que le photographe capture la sculpturale Edita Vilkeviciute en couverture.
Du 6 au 9 juillet 2014, le photographe prend les rênes du compte Instagram de Vogue Paris. Des backstage au front row, en passant par le Vogue Paris Foundation Gala au Palais Galliera, les amateurs férus de mode ont pu suivre en live la Fashion Week haute couture automne-hiver 2014-2015 sur les comptes Instagram @MarioTestino et @VogueParis.
Pour le mois d’octobre 2014, le photographe livre un portrait de famille touchant, réunissant en couverture Natasha Poly et sa fille Aleksandra. Un cliché intime, marquant les dix années de collaboration de la cover girl avec Vogue Paris.
Dernière collaboration en date, le numéro d’avril 2015 de Vogue Paris, grand jeu de la féminité mené en couverture par Charlotte Casiraghi, qui se livre avec passion sous l’objectif de son ami de toujours.
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source: prosiebende
Mario Testino ist einer der bekanntesten Porträt-Fotografen unserer Zeit. In seinem Steckbrief finden sich die Namen der größten Modehäuser ebenso wie die der berühmtesten Schauspieler Hollywoods. Mit den Jahren ist dem Fotograf aber noch etwas anderes wichtiger geworden. Er engagiert sich gegen AIDS und freut sich daher über eine Auszeichnung am meisten: Das “Grand Cross Order of Merit”, die höchste Auszeichnung, die sein Heimatland Peru zu vergeben hat.

Geboren wird Mario Testino 1954 in Lima, Peru, als eines von sechs Kindern. Als junger Mann möchte er Priester werden, studiert dann aber Wirtschaft an verschiedenen Universitäten. 1976 geht er nach London, um Fotografie zu studieren. Innerhalb weniger Jahre entwickelt sich Mario Testino zu einem der gefragtesten Fotografen der Welt. Er macht Fotostrecken für Vogue und Vanity Fair, porträtiert Hollywood-Stars wie Kim Basinger, Emma Watson, Cameron Diaz, Meg Ryan und Lady Gaga und arbeitet mit Modells wie Claudia Schiffer, Gisele Bündchen und Elizabeth Hurley zusammen. Im Jahr 2000 zeigt die berühmte “National Portrait Gallery” in London eine Ausstellung mit einer Auswahl seiner Porträts. Über zehn Jahre bleibt dies die Ausstellung mit der höchsten Besucherzahl, die die Gallerie jemals verzeichnen konnte. Als Fotograf macht er Kampagnen für die großen Labels wie Burberry, Gucci, Dolce und Gabbana, Estée Lauder, Valentino, Shisedo und Versace.

Einer breiten Öffentlichkeit wird der Fotograf aber bekannt durch seine Porträts von der norwegischen Prinzessin Mette-Marit, Margaret Thatcher, Lady Di und anderen Mitgliedern des britischen Königshauses. Seine Fotografien von der Verlobung von Prinz William und Kate Middleton gehen um die Welt. Privat ist Mario Testion eng mit Elton John befreundet und engagiert sich gemeinsam mit ihm gegen Aids. Für sein künstlerisches Werk wird er mehrfach ausgezeichnet, unter anderem mit dem “Rodeo Drive Walk of Style Award”. 2012 gründet der Fotograf in Lima seine eigene Non-Profit-Organisation für peruanische Kunst, “MATE”.
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source: voguees
Fue curiosamente, la necesidad de ganarme la vida. Crecí en Perú. En el colegio se me daban muy bien los números… las matemáticas, el álgebra, la trigonometría, la geometría. De manera que para mí el camino lógico era estudiar Ciencias Económicas. Y eso fue lo que hice durante casi un año, pero lo encontré aborrecible. Luego pasé dos años estudiando Derecho y tampoco me gustó”, este es el relato que hace el archiconocido fotógrafo peruano Mario Testino de sus orígenes.

“A continuación me marché a California a estudiar relaciones internacionales y el resultado fue el mismo, así que me vine a Inglaterra para tratar de encontrar mi camino. Llegué con un grupo de mis mejores amigos (…) Fui a una academia de fotografía para obtener un título oficial y me di cuenta de que la única clase de fotografía que me interesaba era la de moda. Desde niño me obsesionaba la ropa. La idea de representar una personalidad por la manera de vestir me atraía incluso sin cámara, por lo que imagino que aunque, en apariencia, encontré por casualidad mi camino hacia la fotografía de moda, existía, retrospectivamente, un elemento de destino y deseo”, concluye.

Previo a todo esto, Mario Testino, probablemente el fotógrafo más relevante de los últimos veinte años, nació en Perú en 1954. El resto ya es historia, fue consolidando su visión como fotógrafo poco a poco hasta que el mundo se rindió a sus pies con los retratos que hizo a Lady Di.

Su trabajo oscila entre la teatralidad y el minimalismo, entre el arte y la moda, términos que parecen antagónicos pero que se unen irremisiblemente en la obra del peruano. Muchos dicen de él que es el “mejor fotógrafo de moda vivo” y razones no les faltan.

Trabaja para las cabeceras más prestigiosas alrededor del mundo, sus obras cuelgan de museos y galerías y por su objetivo han pasado las modelos, actrices y socialités más solicitadas del planeta. Él, por su parte asegura que las tres personas más memorables con las que ha trabajado son Kate Moss -“porque tiene una mente libre, desbordante y curiosa”-, Madonna y, como no, la princesa Diana de la que se convirtió en una especia de retratista oficial, de ella y también de gran parte de la Familia Real Bitánica.