Oliviero Toscani has passed away at the age of 82. Famous for his provocative campaigns

Oliviero Toscani has passed away at the age of 82. The famous photographer died at Cecina Hospital where he had been hospitalized since Jan. 10 due to his worsening condition. He had been suffering from amyloidosis for two years.

“With immense sorrow we give the news that today, January 13, 2025, our beloved Oliviero embarked on his next journey. We kindly ask for confidentiality and understanding for this moment that we would like to face in the intimacy of the family. Kirsti Toscani with Rocco, Lola and Ali,” is how the family announced the passing in a brief press release.

Oliviero Toscani was born in Milan in 1942, a child of art: his father Fedele was the first photojournalist for Corriere della Sera. His passion for photography was encouraged by his family, which encouraged him to attend the Kunstgewerbeschule in Zurich, where he graduated in 1965.

In the 1960s, Toscani immortalized the symbols of his generation, from the Beatles to the Vigorelli Velodrome. In the early 1970s he moved to New York, living for a time in the Chelsea Hotel and hanging out at Andy Warhol’s Factory. He spent evenings at Max Kansas City or Club 57 and photographed all the stars of the music and creative scene at the time, such as Mick Jagger, Joe Cocker, Alice Cooper, and Lou Reed.

His first scandal came in 1973, with the famous campaign for Jesus jeans: a bold photo accompanied by the slogan “Those who love me, follow me,” which aroused controversy and international attention. In the 1970s he collaborated with major brands such as Missoni, Valentino, Chanel and Fiorucci, establishing himself as one of the most sought-after photographers in the world.

In 1982 comes the meeting that marks a turning point in his career: the beginning of his collaboration with Benetton. Toscani created provocative campaigns that addressed global issues such as racism, AIDS, war, and the death penalty. In 1990 he conceived and directed Colors, the world’s first global newspaper, and in 1993 he conceived and directed Fabrica, a research center for creativity in modern communication. From 1999 to 2000 he was creative director of the monthly Talk Miramax in New York directed by Tina Brown.

After Benetton, Toscani in 2007 created a campaign against anorexia that shocked the fashion world. Also in 2007, he launched the Human Race project, defined by the photographer himself as “a socio-political, cultural and anthropological study that portrays the morphology of the human race in order to observe its peculiarities and characteristics, to understand the differences”: it is an itinerant project. At each stop along the way, the artist sets up a photo studio to portray the local people, the ordinary people who represent the sample of humanity. An archive of photographs and videos that encompasses the essence of humanity, a set of expressions, physical, somatic, social and cultural characteristics of the people at the expense of differences.

For nearly 30 years he had been engaged in the Nuovo Paesaggio Italiano project, a project against the degradation of Italy. Toscani’s work has been exhibited at the Venice Biennale, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, at the Milan Triennale, and in modern and contemporary art museums around the world. He has won numerous awards such as four Golden Lions, the UNESCO Grand Prix, twice the Grand Prix d’Affichage, and numerous awards from Art Directors Clubs around the world. He has been the winner of Saatchi & Saatchi’s “creative hero” award. The Academy of Fine Arts in Urbino awarded him the “Piero’s Dream” prize and he received the title of Academician of Honor from the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence. Oliviero Toscani was an honorary member of the Leonardo Committee and the European Academy of Sciences and Arts.

Oliviero Toscani has passed away at the age of 82. Famous for his provocative campaigns

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