David LaChapelle was born in Connecticut in 1969, studied fine art at North Carolina School of the Arts before moving to New York, where he enrolled in the Art Students League and the School of Visual Arts. LaChapelle’s career took off in the ‘80s, when he attracted the attention of Andy Warhol and the editors of Interview Magazine, who offered him his first professional job as a photographer. Since then, David has shot some of the world’s most familiar faces, including Lil Kim, Madonna, Elizabeth Taylor, Tupac Shakur and Lady Gaga. Having built up an impressive catalogue of his signature vivid and colourful photography, LaChapelle expanded his work to include music videos, live theatrical events and documentary films. His stage work includes Elton John’s Las Vegas spectacular ‘The Red Piano’, which ended its five-year run in Las Vegas in 2009. David has directed many music videos including Christina Aguilera’s Dirty, Amy Winehouse’s Tears Dry On Their Own and Britney Spears Everytime. LaChapelle and his burgeoning interest in film led him to make the short documentary Krumped, an award-winner at Sundance from which he developed the feature film RIZE. The film was released to huge critical acclaim, and was chosen to open the 2005 Tribeca Film Festival in New York City. LaChapelle’s work has also featured in a number of exhibitions worldwide at institutions such as the Palazzo delle Esposizioni and Palazzo Reale in Italy; the Barbican in London, and The Helmut Newton Foundation in Berlin. He has shot three covers for i-D, the first of Naomi Campbell for The ideas Issue in November 1999, the inside shoot seeing Naomi take on opponents in the wrestling ring, the second of Ana Claudia dressed in equestrian gear alongside her horse for The Gift Issue in December 2000 and the most recent of Courtney Love for The Insider Issue in October 2003 with her holding a neon heart over her right eye for the cover. He continues to be inspired by a variety of subject matters, from art history to street culture.
