Georges Dambier was born in 1925 and was one of the first fashion photographers to take models out of the studio and into the streets. While he was still building and perfecting his craft, Dambier was hired by Helene Lazareff, director of ELLE, the fashion magazine, who encouraged him and gave him his first assignment as a fashion photographer.
During his career Dambier photographed amongst others: Rita Hayworth, Gene Tierney, Errol Flynn, Jeanne Moreau, Jean Cocteau, ou Colette, mais aussi Bettina, Capucine and Suzy Parker.
Georges Dambier did not conform to the standard technique of taking fashion pictures, with models standing emotionless and seemingly indifferent to the camera. Instead, he showed models smiling, laughing and often in action. His models were surrounded by local people in a market place in Marrakech, or in a village in Corsica, or – and above all – in his beloved Paris.
Capucine for ELLE, Boulevard de la Madeleine, Paris, Georges Dambier, 1952 via
Suzy Parker by Georges Dambier via
Suzy Parker Shop Lanvin, Elle, Georges Dambier, 1952 via
1957 via
Sophie Litvak and little dog, Elle, 1952 via
‘Black and White’, Mary Jane Russell, Le Pavillon, New York, Harper’s Bazaar, 1950 by Lillian Bassman via
Henry Clarke, Suzy Parker wearing Givenchy, 1952 via
Lisa Fonssagrives in Charles James Suit, photographed by Horst P. Horst for Vogue, 1950 via
Carmen Dell’Orefice in Paris, 1950s, photo by Richard Avedon via
Dorian Leigh wearing Madame Grés by Henry Clarke in 1955 via
Traina-Norell dress 1957, photo by Karen Radkai (model could be Sunny Harnett) via
Horst P.Horst, Suzy Parker, August 1954
When modeling agent Eileen Ford met the model Dorian Leigh’s fifteen-year-old redhead sister, in 1948, she ‘almost fainted with delight’. Suzy Parker became a prominent model of her times who, with her high dimpled cheeks, short flame hair and dark blue eyes, captured the attention of the most famous photographers such as Richard Avedon who believed ‘she was something else – a redheaded force of nature, a wolf in chic clothing, the one flesh-and-blood woman in a world of exquisite creatures’ (source).
Her modeling career reached its zenith during the 1950s. She appeared on the cover of dozens of magazines and in advertisements and starred in movie and television roles.
Suzy Parker in Harpers Bazaar, wearing a little feathery hat. Photograph by Richard Avedon via
Suzy Parker for Mauboussin. Photograph by Henry Clarke, 1953 via
FROM THE BYGONE 