American fashion photographer William Klein dies at 96

By

Jennifer Braun

Published
Sep 12, 2022

American fashion photographer and filmmaker William Klein passed away peacefully on Saturday evening in Paris. He was 96 years old. 

The news was announced on Monday in a communication from his son Pierre Klein.

Born in 1926 in New York City, Klein was originally trained as a painter. He studied under Fernand Léger and found early success through successful solo exhibitions in Milan. 

He eventually migrated to photography, following a stint in the war. His photographic style was soon recognized by art director Alexander Liberman, which led him to a job as a photographer for Vogue in New York in 1954, kickstarting his career. 

Klein won the Prix Nadar in 1957 for "New York", a book of photographs taken during a brief return to his hometown in 1954. He also won the Royal Photographic Society’s Centenary Medal and Honorary Fellowship in 1999 and the Outstanding Contribution to Photography Award from the Sony World Photography Awards in 2012. He is ranked 25th on Professional Photographer's list of 100 most influential photographers.

Most recently, his work was highlighted in an exhibition at New York’s International Center of Photography, “William Klein: YES: Photographs, Paintings, Films, 1948–2013.”