Published by COCCOLOBA - Le Magazine de la Vie à Saint-Barth
Edition N°09 December 2021 (Pages 46-47)
See original published article
"Forces of Nature"
Photographs by Iran Issa-Khan at the Wall House Territorial Museum: 22 December 2021 - 10 February 2022
Talented, spirited and fabulous, surrounded by artists, fashion designers and other creatives, Issa-Khan immersed herself in the art world and admired the photographic works of Horst, Avedon, Guy Bourdin and Francesco Scavullo - all of whom later influenced her work as a professional fashion photographer. During the 1980’s and 90’s,Issa-Khan’s career flourished as she photographed the most memorable fashion faces of the time - Paulina Porizkova, Andie MacDowell, Talisa Soto, Iman, Christy Turlington and many others who appeared on the covers of U.S., European and Latin American editions of Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue, Elle and numerous other publications.
Iran Issa-Khan Rapture, 2020 Limited edition color c-print photograph (Edition of 8) (48 x 84 in / 121.92 x 213.36 cm)
Iran Issa-Khan Vermillion, 2020, Limited edition color c-print photograph (Edition of 12) (60 x 80 in / 152.40 x 203.20 cm)
Issa-Khan’s images covered dozens of issues of Harper’s Bazaar, while her stylish eye shined through the glossy pages of many fashion magazines in editorials and advertising, gaining her worldwide acclaim. She became a favorite of celebrities, socialites, business and political figures, and fellow artists, resulting in many editorial portrait commissions – the Ferragamo family and Fendi family, Prince Egon and Diane von Furstenberg, Carolina and Reinaldo Herrera, Bill Blass, and Oscar de le Renta, among others. She photographed Paloma Picasso’s national and international advertising campaigns, which extended more than a decade, Nancy Reagan at the White House, the Duke and Duchess of Marlborough at Blenheim Palace, President and Mrs. Pastrana in Colombia, Baron and Baroness David and Olympia de Rothschild in Paris – and artists Alejandro Obregon in Colombia, Oswaldo Guayasaminin in Ecuador and Rufino Tamayo in Mexico.
In 1999, Issa-Khan moved to Coral Gables, Florida, to be closer to family and enjoy the warm winters. Much different than the concrete jungle and fast-paced life she was accustomed to, her eye quickly focused on the serene and tropical beauty of her natural surroundings.
Inspired by this, she began photographing flowers, shells, coral and other products of nature. These images, reminiscent of the works of Georgia O‘Keeffe, Tina Modotti, Irving Penn and Robert Mapplethorpe, daringly challenge her subjects to an extraordinary intimacy through close-up confrontation. Further observation reveals formal complexity, color and texture, while her master lighting and technical skills from fashion photography clearly translate. Whether subtle, in soft, monochromatic tones, or bold and audacious, in highly saturated colors – all her photographs are captured on film and printed to large scale.
Iran Issa-Khan, now 83, resides in Miami, Florida where she has been working on her nature series for the last 20 years. Considered one of the most important female photographers alongside Annie Liebowitz – her name and talent is internationally renowned. Her work is noted for its deceptive simplicity and elegance.
Iran Issa-Khan Purity, 2020 Limited edition color c-print photograph (Edition of 12) (30 x 24 in / 76.20 x 60.96 cm)