Over the last 30 years Rankin Waddell has been at the forefront of fashion photography, from shaping the aesthetics of the 90s and 00s, to dominating contemporary fashion editorials, cinematography, graphic design, and music videos for artists such as Kelis and Azealia Banks. To coincide with his 30th year of shooting, the photographer has published the first retrospective of his work titled Rankin: Unfashionable: 30 Years of Fashion Photography. Celebrating an extraordinary life in fashion photography, the book provides a behind-the-scenes look at the icon’s expansive work.
Rankin: Unfashionable is presented in reverse chronology, starting with his most recent projects and current magazine Hunger TV. The book then works its way through to his early portraiture in the late 1980s, and the founding of Dazed & Confused and AnOther Magazine with Jefferson Hack. Tapping into the spirit of the era, Rankin’s early photographic approach was playful and experimental whilst remaining intimate. Early Dazed editorials show this, such as his Weep (1994), Highly Flammable (1997) and one of Rankin’s favourite Dazed covers Spray Paint Kate (1998). The concept was to use Kate Moss as a blank canvas and to spray paint over her, transforming her body into a piece of art in itself.
Intricate details of his work are further revealed through interviews with his collaborators and muses including Jefferson Hack, Katie Grand, Andrew Gallimore, and Kate Moss, all of whom have been influential figures in his career. The interviews are supplemented with contact sheets, outtakes, and film stills providing an exciting insight into Rankin’s creative process and some of his most memorable work.
Last night Jefferson Hack, co-founder of Dazed Media, Katie Grand, founding editor-in-chief of Love Magazine and Sharan Pasricha, founder and CEO of Ennismore threw a celebration to mark the release of Rankin: Unfashionable at Ennismore Sessions House. Situated in Clerkenwell, London it played host to a mix of DJ sets by Louie Banks and James Massiah. A varied drinks menu was enjoyed which included cocktails by Absolut Elyx, as well as floral arrangements by Flowerbx. Kate Moss, Aweng, Christopher Kane and Charlotte Tilbury were among the guest list of friends and notable faces joining together to celebrate 30 years of fashion photography.
Rankin: Unfashionable: 30 Years of Fashion Photography by Rankin – published by Rizzoli New York – is available now. You can find more information here
