Albert Watson
“It doesn’t matter if you’re photographing a porter in a market in Marrakech or you’re photographing the king of Morroco. You have the same sympathetic approach to everybody. You be nice to everybody, basically.”
Albert Watson
With over forty years of photography, Albert Watson has made his mark as one of the world's most successful and prolific photographers. Since he began his career in 1970, he has blended a unique style, fusing art, fashion and commercial photography into some of the most iconic images ever seen. From portraits of Alfred Hitchcock and Steve Jobs, beauty shots of Kate Moss, to Las Vegas landscapes and still-life photographs of King Tutankhamon artifacts, Albert's diversity and body of work are unparalleled.
Yet as diverse as it is, it bears a striking coherence. Each picture is characterized by a graphic purity typical of the artist’s sharpened eye. Through his lens, Watson strips his images to distill their essence, hence creating clear, intense shots which magnify their subject. His style has inspired generations of photographers and his oeuvre has been the subject of solo shows in the most renowned museums worldwide. His immense career has won him numerous honors, including a Lucie Award, a Grammy Award, three Andys, a Der Steiger Award, a Hasselblad Masters Award; and the Centenary Medal, a lifetime achievement award from the Royal Photographic Society. Queen Elizabeth II awarded the Scotsman an Order of the British Empire (OBE) in June 2015 for his lifetime contribution to the art of photography. It is no wonder Photo District News named Albert one of the 20 most influential photographers of all time, along with Irving Penn and Richard Avedon, among others.
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Albert WatsonAla Sekula, New York City, 2016
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Albert WatsonJoop Stockings, New York City, 1993
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Albert WatsonBetty Prado (Back), New York City, 1986
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Albert WatsonBetty Prado, New York City, 1986
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Albert WatsonMayra Suarez, New York City, 2009
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Albert WatsonSinéad O'Connor, Berlin, 1990
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Albert WatsonNataly, St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands, 1988
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Albert WatsonMike Tyson Portrait, Catskills, New York, 1986
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Albert WatsonMike Tyson, Catskills, New York, 1986
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Albert WatsonSinead O’Connor
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Albert WatsonButterfly Man, New York City, 1997
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Albert WatsonMichael Castellano in Pool, Baja California, 1979
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Albert WatsonAdriana Lima with Popsicle, New York City, 1997
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Albert WatsonAmira Casar, Paris, 1988
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Albert WatsonJack Nicholson with Hat, Aspen, Colorado, 1981
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Albert WatsonKaren Howard, Courmayeur, Italy, 1979
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Albert WatsonSinead O’Connor with Angel, New York City, 1992
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Albert WatsonAlbert Watson, Andy Warhol, NYC, 1985
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Albert WatsonAlfred Hitchcock, Los Angeles, 1973
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Albert WatsonAna Cunya, New York City, 2009
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Albert WatsonAnna Whitworth with Necklace, NYC, 1982
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Albert WatsonBreaunna in a Cat Mask, Las Vegas Hilton, 2001
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Albert WatsonCharlotte Flossaut in Sombrero, New Mexico, 1988
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Albert WatsonCharlotte in Sombrero, New Mexico, 1988
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Albert WatsonChristy Turlington, Luxor, 1987
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Albert WatsonChristy Turlington, New York City, 1990
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Albert WatsonDavid Bowie, New York City, 1996
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Albert WatsonKate Moss Back II, 1993
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Albert WatsonKate Moss, Marrakech (Color Polaroid), 1993
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Albert WatsonKing Casey, New York City, 1992
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Albert WatsonKing Casey, NYC, 1992
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Albert WatsonLara Young Earrings, Mauritius, 1984
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Albert WatsonLeslie Winer in Yohji Yamamoto, London, 1989
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Albert WatsonLinda Husjord, Gold Coast Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, 2000
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Albert WatsonMaggie Maurer in Veil, Paris, 2021
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Albert WatsonMan on Unicycle with Umbrella, New York City, 1994
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Albert WatsonMostapha Elhanch, Boy With Jar, Marrakesh, 1997
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Albert WatsonNancy Alvarez, Gold Coast Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, 2000
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Albert WatsonNaomi Campbell, Palm Springs, California, 1989
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Albert WatsonNorth Exit 25, Outside Las Vegas, 2001
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Albert WatsonRoad to Nowhere, 2001
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Albert WatsonRunning Man, San Francisco, 1992
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Albert WatsonSade, London, 1992
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Albert WatsonSebastian in Issey Miyake, New York City, 1989
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Albert WatsonSuit of Lights, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, 2001
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Albert WatsonSun & Henna, Marrakech, 1993
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Albert WatsonThe Flower Seller's Hands, Marrakesh, 1989
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Albert WatsonTod Motor Motel, Las Vegas, 2001
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Albert WatsonTrees, La Palmeraie, Marrakesh, 1997
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Albert WatsonYvette, Berlin, 1990
Born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland, Albert studied graphic design at the Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design in Dundee, and film and television at the Royal College of Art in London. Though blind in one eye since birth, Albert studied photography as part of his curriculum.
In 1970, he moved to the United States where Albert began shooting photos, mostly as a hobby. Later that year, Albert met an art director at Max Factor, who offered him his first test session. Albert's distinctive style eventually caught the attention of American and European fashion magazines such as Mademoiselle, GQ, and Harper's Bazaar, which booked him for a shoot with Alfred Hitchcock, the first celebrity Albert ever photographed. In 1976, Albert landed his first job for Vogue, and with his move to New York that same year, his career took off.
Over the years, Albert's photographs have appeared on more than 100 covers of Vogue worldwide and have been featured in countless other publications, from Rolling Stone to Time to Harper's Bazaar; many of the photos iconic fashion shots or portraits of rock stars, rappers, actors and other celebrities. Albert also has created the photography for hundreds of ad campaigns for major companies, such as Prada, the Gap, Levi's, Revlon and Chanel. He has shot dozens of Hollywood movie posters, such as Kill Bill and Memoirs of a Geisha, and has also directed more than 100 television commercials.
All the while, Albert has spent much of his time working on art projects for museum and gallery exhibitions, which feature his well-known portraits and fashion photographs, along with powerful shots from his travels and interests, such as a snake charmer in Morocco, a dominatrix in Las Vegas or the dramatic mountains on the Isle of Skye in Scotland.
Since 2004, Albert has had solo shows at the Museum of Modern Art and the Forma Galleri in Milan, Italy; the KunstHausWien in Vienna, Austria; the City Art Centre in Edinburgh, Scotland; the FotoMuseum in Antwerp, Belgium; the NRW Forum in Dusseldorf, Germany; Fotografiska in Stockholm, Sweden; and the Multimedia Art Museum in Moscow, Russia. In 2013, a major retrospective, with a new body of work Albert shot in Benin, Africa, was held at the Deichtorhallen in Hamburg, Germany.
His immense career has won him numerous honors, including a Lucie Award, a Grammy Award, three Andys, a Der Steiger Award, a Hasselblad Masters Award; and the Centenary Medal, a lifetime achievement award from the Royal Photographic Society. Queen Elizabeth II awarded the Scotsman an Order of the British Empire (OBE) in June 2015 for his lifetime contribution to the art of photography.
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Photo London 2024
April 26, 2024See you in Photo London from Thursday 16th till Sunday 19th of May. We will be pleased to welcome you at the booth #G28 located...Read more -
Moderne Art Fair
Paris October 2023See in Paris for Moderne Art Fair (booth #231)! We will be exhibiting nature inspired photographs by Alain Laboile, Bas Meeuws, Cecilia Paredes, Jan Schlegel,...Read more -
Albert Watson | The Maestro
Hangaram Museum, Seoul December 2022This retrospective exhibition is Albert Watson's first major museum show in Seoul, Korea, and the largest in Asia. Featuring more than 120 photographs going all...Read more
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Photo London 24
16 - 19 May 2024We are thrilled to return to London for the 2024 edition of Photo London . Meet us at booth #G28 to discover our selection of...Read more -
Photo London 21
9 - 12 Sep 2021We are delighted to exhibit at Somerset House for Photo London, from 8–12 September. We present a curated selection of photographs by Albert Watson, Marc...Read more