IN THE LOOP: Shooting Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s engagement portrait and royal wedding rocketed Alexi Lubomirski to the worldwide stage. Building on that exposure, the New York photographer has unveiled an exhibition in Asia.
Alexi Lubomirski Studio teamed with ACDC Shanghai to unveil “Selected Portraits by Alexi Lubomirski,” a survey of his celebrity portraiture at MIFA 1862 in Harbour City, Shanghai.
Curated by ACDC’s Daniele Kim, there are shots of Julia Roberts, Natalie Portman, Angelina Jolie and, of course, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, among others. (More recently, Lubomirski photographed Ralph Lauren’s 50th anniversary show in Central Park.)
As for how the lensman would describe the speed of life in the past six months, he said via-email, “Personally it has been a whirlwind of crazy jobs, which included the royal wedding, cover shoots with some incredible celebrities, and the portraits taken at the Ralph Lauren 50th anniversary show, of people such as Oprah, Hillary Clinton, Steven Spielberg, Bruce Springsteen and many others.”
Taking the longer view, he added, “In the industry, the past six to 12 months have seen a lot of reassessment. In the current cultural and political environment, individual creatives, as well as companies and brands, are being asked to clarify their stance on a huge range of issues that the public cares about. Actions are being accounted for and everyone is being scrutinized, as our voices carry so much weight in influencing the way people consume, young women and young men perceive themselves, and the culture at large.”
The star-heavy show in Shanghai is geared toward introducing his portraiture to the Chinese market. The Shanghai outpost is the inaugural event in what will be a series of initiatives in Asia. They will serve as a set-up for his “Glamconscious” project, which will be launched late next year. After realizing “how much power we in the fashion industry have to inspire people,” Lubomirski said he decided to use his platform “as much as possible to inspire young people on subjects such as not using fur, making sustainable fashion choices and also adopting a healthier lifestyle, for them and the environment, such as going vegan. So we started Glamconscious as a movement to encourage our industry to use its reach and assets for good.”
He said, “It is a time of reckoning for the industry. But also for each of us as individuals and a time when we must choose if we will use our gift, position and influence to advocate for a better tomorrow, while inspiring those who follow us and look up to us.”
His other new project, “Creatives4Change,” will be launched soon. And on Father’s Day, June 16, the father of two will debut a children’s book called “Gratitude.” Creatives4Change’s mission statement states, “We are no longer able to hide behind the glossy pages of a monthly magazine the way we used to before the digital revolution.The world is watching us every second on social media and we cannot afford to make rash mistakes by ignoring issues that we know to be important, whether it is to do with the diversity issue, working with people with a history of abuse or flagrantly disregarding sustainable methods of producing fashion…It is not about being ashamed of the choices we once made, but instead, being proud about what we will become tomorrow.”
Having worked with Harper’s China, Vogue China, Vogue Korea, W Korea and other Asian publications, he knows the scope of the land in Asia. Two years ago Lubomirski teamed with Michael Kors and Vogue China for the “Young China” exhibition in Beijing, which featured five shoots with fresh-faced Chinese celebrities.