Patrick Demarchelier

Career

Patrick Demarchelier was born in 1943 in Le Havre.

He began pho­tog­ra­phy at the age of 17 with a cam­era given to him by his step­fa­ther. At 20, Demarchelier moved to Paris and became the assis­tant of Hans Feurer. After this expe­ri­ence, he went on to work for Elle and Marie Claire. 

Visual Style

In 1975, he moved to New York and reg­u­larly col­lab­o­rated with Glamour and Vogue. At the end of the 70s, he signed an exclu­sive con­tract with the pres­ti­gious Harper’s Bazaar. 

Major Series and Works

In 1989, Princess Diana chose Patrick Demarchelier as her offi­cial pho­tog­ra­pher, which greatly increased his pop­u­lar­ity. Film stars, singers, and celebri­ties eagerly sought to be pho­tographed by him. 

Recognition

In 2008, he exhib­ited 400 prints at the Petit Palais in Paris, con­firm­ing his impor­tance on the inter­na­tional pho­to­graphic scene.

Patrick Demarchelier died in March 2022.

Reading the Work

Patrick Demarchelier’s work finds its bal­ance in an ele­gant, nat­ural, and time­less aes­thetic, built upon light, the grace of the sub­ject, and the sim­plic­ity of com­po­si­tion. His work is dis­tin­guished by a refined sig­na­ture style, a his­tor­i­cal influ­ence on fash­ion pho­tog­ra­phy, and an abil­ity to cre­ate images that have become iconic ref­er­ences. Interpreting his pho­tographs ben­e­fits from close atten­tion to sub­tle details: a com­po­si­tional ele­ment, a par­tic­u­lar way of posi­tion­ing the sub­ject, a use of light, or the ren­der­ing of tex­ture is often enough to reveal their depth.