biography and work of Mario Testino

Mario Testino OBE is widely regarded as one of the most influential fashion and portrait photographers of our times.
Born in Lima in 1954 to a traditional Catholic family, remote from the worlds of fashion and Hollywood, Testino moved from Peru to London in 1976. It was during apprenticeships at the studios of John Vickers and Paul Nugent that he made his first attempts as a photographer, inspired by how photography masters documented the society of their times: “I tried to emulate the English – the Mitford sisters, Stephen Tennant and Cecil Beaton.”^[1] His career began tentatively with a commission to photograph a girl’s haircut for British Vogue. The girl in the picture was stylist Lucinda Chambers and the shoot sparked a personal friendship and professional partnership that has lasted to this day. During the early nineties, Testino looked to his experience growing up in Peru and his long teenage summers in Brazil for inspiration, which helped him to create a unique and personal photographic language. “I noticed an evolution in my work…when I tried to recreate my youth in pictures.”^[2]
Testino’s is an artistic vocabulary that transgresses genders, mixes masculinity and femininity and suggests sensuality rather than sexuality. Suzy Menkes, Vogue’s International Editor explains, “Testino’s skill is first and foremost to catch the moment and to bring out the humanity in his subjects.”^[3] Testino’s subjects appear confidently alive; he captures their energy by creating an openness and intimacy with them. Known for the extraordinary way in which he can capture the most private of moments, Testino’s spontaneous, intimate portraits offer the viewer new perspectives on famous faces, often establishing new fashion icons. He has documented subjects from A-list stars, muses, supermodels and artists, to subjects that he has encountered throughout his travels, from magnificent cities by night to mysterious landscapes and private soirees.

Testino was nicknamed the “John Singer Sargent of our times” by Terence Pepper, photography curator at The National Portrait Gallery in London.^[5] The Gallery’s 2002 Portraits exhibition attracted more visitors than any other show in the museum’s history at the time. Charles Saumarez Smith, then director of the NPG, compared Testino to court artists and portraitists from Holbein to Reynolds. “There is a strong relationship between Mario’s work and the general tradition of portrait artists. Just like court artists in the past, he works to a tight timetable and significant commercial constraints.”^[6]
One of Testino’s most memorable sittings to this day is his series with Diana, Princess of Wales. Commissioned for Vanity Fair in 1997, he said: “One of my greatest experiences in life was photographing Princess Diana. It’s not only that the experience itself was amazing, but she opened a door for me because I then started photographing the royal families of Europe extensively…this brings out my love for tradition, for a way of showing family and the longevity of people”^[4]. He has photographed many royals including The Prince of Wales, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Harry, the King and Queen of Jordan and King and Queen of the Netherlands, among others.

Testino’s work has been exhibited at museums around the world, among them the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston (In Your Face, 2012), the Shanghai Art Museum (Private View, 2012), Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid (Todo o Nada, 2010), the Metropolitan Museum in Tokyo (Portraits, 2004) and Foam in Amsterdam (Portraits, 2003). Solo exhibitions of his work have been presented at galleries such as Mary Boone Gallery in New York, Phillips de Pury in London, Yvon Lambert in Paris and Timothy Taylor in London. More than sixteen books have been published on his work including Portraits (National Portrait Gallery, 2002), Let Me In! (Taschen, 2007), In Your Face (Taschen, 2012) and SIR (Taschen, 2015).

His growing personal collection of artworks ranging from painting to sculpture and photography has also been the subject of numerous shows. Testino’s relationship with fine art developed after frequent visits to galleries and artist’s studios. He said: “Just as photography is a vehicle for me to live a new moment, to go to a new place, meet a new person and so on, art is a process of encounter and discovery. The display of art for me is not just about seeing the work isolated in a white cube. It’s also about engaging with the art – and sometimes the artist – to make something new.”^[7] He has collaborated in the creation of some unique works with artists such as Keith Haring, Vik Muniz, John Currin and Julian Schnabel.

Awarded the Order of the British Empire in 2013 in recognition of his career and charity work, in 2010 he was also appointed one of the highest honours in his native country, The Grand Cross Order of Merit in Peru, and became President of the Board of World Monuments Fund Peru in 2014. He has worked with Save the Children, amfAR, The Elton John Aids Foundation and CLIC Sargent for children with cancer. The arts are a source of joy to Testino to the extent that in 2012 he opened a non-profit museum in Lima. MATE – Museo Mario Testino was established to contribute to Peru through the cultivation and promotion of culture and heritage. For Testino, art is never static. It is something to be appreciated and collected as fragments that make up a greater mental library: a library that is in constant flow.