Pirelli calendar 2024 is particularly colorful
The Pirelli calendar celebrates its 60th birthday - with its 50th edition. It is designed by the African artist Prince Gyasi. In contrast to some simple workshop calendars, this coveted work of photographic art has nothing to do with car tires, even in 2024.
It is a frenzy of colors and shapes, a world staged down to the last detail around dignitaries, artists, athletes or models such as style icon Naomi Campbell. Prince Gyasi, a photographer from Accra, Ghana, born in 1995, goes for a colorful look in the 50th edition of the world-famous Pirelli calendar. No wonder, because the shooting star of the photography scene thinks and speaks in colors.
And that is to be understood literally. The works are influenced by his very personal experiences with the neurological phenomenon of synaesthesia; he associates colors with words and stages his photos like opulent paintings. Beauty, colors, light - the art-loving Pirelli Executive Vice Chairman Marco Tronchetti Provera calls the result of the photo sessions in London and Ghana an "optimistic approach to the future". "This is tradition without the burden of the past." And at the same time, it is a look at a still underestimated continent full of potential.
Timelessness in pictures
Prince Gyasi has chosen the title "Timeless" for "The Cal 2024". His credo: "We are not born timeless, but we will be." Fittingly, Naomi Campbell is holding a hand that has been removed from a giant clock on one of the calendar pages entitled "Time Stopper" - timelessness could not be depicted more clearly.
However, the calendar title is not to be understood as a call to be content with the here and now. Rather, Prince Gyasi wants to encourage young people in particular to learn, create and inspire others: "I hope they understand that they can do anything they want to do if they try hard enough and are determined."
It is precisely this determination that he has identified in his calendar protagonists: "They have found their strengths and changed their destiny," he says of such contrasting 2024 models as actor Idris Elba, Ashanti monarch Otumfuo Osei Tutu II and young poet Amanda Gorman. With their appearance in the Pirelli calendar, they all stand in an impressive time line with countless stars and starlets of this calendar, which is not for sale but is sent to a few thousand selected friends of the brand every year.
"Free to express yourself"
Big names in front of and behind the camera are a trademark of the Bild work, which was originally conceived in 1964 as a promotional gift for major customers. Initially, in keeping with the male-dominated "taste of the public", some of the images still featured plenty of naked skin and some also had cautious associations with Pirelli products - for example in the form of imprints of the latest sports tires in the sand next to the models.
Over the years, however, "The Cal" continued to develop and quickly achieved cult status. Since then, the most renowned photographers of their era have not only portrayed the most famous models, actresses and artists for him. They also create contemporary culture, interpret the prevailing zeitgeist and set new trends. And they do so without being influenced by the client. The photographers are "free to express themselves", says Pirelli CEO Tronchetti Provera, emphasizing an important principle of his company. He explains his decades-long commitment to calendars as follows: in order to grow as a company over the decades, art, industry and politics must grow with society.
Calendar took a break for a few years
The annual chronicle of the Pirelli calendar is not entirely without gaps. From 1975 to 1983, Pirelli also made savings, but the global recession and a subsequent phase of tight budgets put a temporary end to the project. In 2021, the coronavirus put the brakes on production. That's why the 2024 calendar is "only" the 50th in 60 years.
It looks like Prince Gyasi has not only hit the nail on the head for his own pictures with his title "Timeless". But also for "The Cal" as a whole - in the past and in the future.
The Pirelli calendar, celebrated in its 60th anniversary with the 50th edition, showcases various figures from arts, sports, and fashion, including models. This edition, titled "Timeless," is a vibrant display of Prince Gyasi's photographic art, infused with his synesthetic experiences.
The coveted Pirelli calendar, known for its diverse and influential photographers, allows them "free to express themselves," continuing to shape contemporary culture and trends without any client influence, as stated by Pirelli CEO Marco Tronchetti Provera.
Source: www.ntv.de
