Editing Herb Ritts

{{short description|American photographer}}
{{More citations needed|date=July 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2019}}
{{Infobox person
| name        = Herb Ritts
| image       = Herb Ritts.jpg
| image_size  =
| birth_name  = Herbert Ritts Jr.
| birth_date  = {{birth date|1952|08|13}}
| birth_place = [[Los Angeles]], California, U.S.
| death_date  = {{death date and age|2002|12|26|1952|08|13|mf=y}}
| death_place = Los Angeles, California, U.S.
| alma_mater  = [[Bard College]]
| occupation  = Photographer
| known_for   = 
| awards      = [[GLAAD Media Awards]]<br />Pioneer Award 2008
}}

'''Herbert Ritts Jr.''' (August 13, 1952 – December 26, 2002) was an American [[fashion photography|fashion photographer]] and director known for his photographs of celebrities, models, and other cultural figures throughout the 1980s and 1990s. His work concentrated on black and white photography and portraits, often in the style of classical [[Greek art|Greek sculpture]], which emphasized the human shape.<ref name=nyt/>

== Early life and education ==
Ritts was born on August 13, 1952, in [[Brentwood, Los Angeles]]. His father, Herb Ritts Sr. (née Rittigstein), was a furniture designer and his mother, [[Shirley Ritts]] (née Roos), was an interior designer.<ref name=":0">Abrams, Melanie. [https://www.thejc.com/life-and-culture/all/lens-that-dened-a-generation-1.24087 "Life and Culture: Lens That Defined a Generation."] [[Thejc.com]] Retrieved May 23, 2022.</ref> Together, their furniture business helped to popularize [[rattan]] furniture in the [[1950s in the United States|1950s]] and [[1960s in the United States|1960s]]. Raised in an affluent [[Jews|Jewish]] family, he and his three younger siblings lived next door to actor [[Steve McQueen]], whom he considered to be "like a second father".<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Quinton |first=François |title=Herb Ritts Interview |url=http://www.herbritts.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/HerbRitts_Interview_Francois-Quintin.pdf |access-date=March 11, 2024 |website=Herb Ritts Foundation}}</ref> 

At his [[Bar and bat mitzvah|bar mitzvah]], his father gifted him with a [[Kodak Brownie]] camera.<ref name=":0" /> He attended [[Palisades Charter High School|Palisades High School]] and moved to upstate New York in 1972 to study at [[Bard College]], where he received a degree in economics with a minor in art history.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sharpsteen |first=Bill |date=2000-10-29 |title=EYE OF THE BEHOLDER |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-oct-29-tm-43664-story.html |access-date=2024-03-11 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> Upon graduation in 1975, he moved back to California to work as a sales representative in the family business.<ref name="nyt">{{cite web|work=The New York Times|title=Herb Ritts, Photographer of Celebrities, Is Dead at 50|author=Bellafante, Ginia|date=December 27, 2002|access-date=December 23, 2017|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/27/us/herb-ritts-photographer-of-celebrities-is-dead-at-50.html}}</ref><blockquote>"I’m glad I didn’t go to school for photography. Other photographers I know, [[Helmut Newton]] and [[Bruce Weber (photographer)|Bruce Weber]] didn’t either. Even [[Steven Meisel]] didn’t, really—he went to fashion school. For me, the most important thing I learned was just honing my eye. [...] I was tutoring myself, I suppose. Many people who excel are self-taught".<ref name=":1" /></blockquote>Ritts bought his first camera in 1976, a 35mm [[Miranda Camera Company|Miranda]] DX-3.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ritts |first=Herb |url=https://www.worldcat.org/title/733755695 |title=Herb Ritts: L.A. style |last2=Martineau |first2=Paul |last3=Crump |first3=James |date=2012 |publisher=J. Paul Getty Museum |others=J. Paul Getty Museum, Cincinnati Art Museum, John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art |isbn=978-1-60606-100-8 |location=Los Angeles |oclc=733755695}}</ref>

== Career ==
Later, while living in Los Angeles, he became interested in photography when he and friend [[Richard Gere]], then an aspiring actor, decided to shoot some photographs in front of an old Buick.<ref name=nyt/> The picture gained Ritts some coverage and he began to be more serious about photography. He photographed [[Brooke Shields]] for the cover of the October 12, 1981 edition of ''[[Elle (magazine)|Elle]]'' and he photographed [[Olivia Newton-John]] for her ''[[Physical (Olivia Newton-John album)|Physical]]'' album in 1981. Five years later he replicated that cover pose with [[Madonna (entertainer)|Madonna]] for her 1986 release ''[[True Blue (Madonna album)|True Blue]]''. That year he photographed [[Tina Turner]] for the album ''[[Break Every Rule]]''.

During the 1980s and 1990s, Ritts photographed celebrities in various locales throughout California.<ref name=RS87>{{citation | last=Loder | first=Kurt | title=Stardust Memories |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]| issue=498 | date=April 23, 1987 | pages=74–77,80,82,168,171}}</ref> Some of his subjects during this time included musical artists. He also took fashion and nude photographs of models [[Naomi Campbell]], [[Stephanie Seymour]], [[Tatjana Patitz]], [[Christy Turlington]], and [[Cindy Crawford]], including "[[Tatjana Veiled Head (Tight View), Joshua Tree 1988|Tatjana, Veiled Head, Tight View, Joshua Tree, 1988]]."<ref>{{cite web|access-date=2022-09-03|title=Herb Ritts|url=https://www.herbritts.com/}}</ref> Ritts' work with them ushered in the 1990s era of the supermodel and was consecrated by one of his most celebrated images, "Stephanie, Cindy, Christy, Tatjana, Naomi, Hollywood, 1989" taken for ''[[Rolling Stone]]''.{{cn|date=September 2022}}

He also worked for ''[[Interview (magazine)|Interview]]'', ''[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]]'', ''[[Mademoiselle (magazine)|Mademoiselle]]'', ''[[Glamour (magazine)|Glamour]]'', ''[[GQ (magazine)|GQ]]'', ''[[Newsweek]]'', ''[[Harper's Bazaar]]'', ''Rolling Stone'',<ref name=RS87 /> ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'', ''[[Vogue (magazine)|Vogue]]'', ''[[Allure (magazine)|Allure]]'', ''[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]'', ''[[Details (magazine)|Details]]'', and ''[[Elle (magazine)|Elle]]''. Ritts took publicity portraits for [[Batman (1989 film)|''Batman'']], ''[[Batman Forever]]'', and [[Batman & Robin (film)|''Batman & Robin'']] which appeared on magazine covers and merchandise throughout the 1990s. He published books on photography for various fashion designers.

From 1996 to 1997 Ritts' work was displayed at the [[Boston Museum of Fine Arts]] in Boston, attracting more than 250,000 people to the exhibit,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.boston.com/ae/theater_arts/exhibitionist/2007/04/breaking_herb_r.html|title=Breaking: Herb Ritts Money, Art to MFA50|last=Edgers|first=Geoff|date=April 5, 2007|work=The Boston Globe|access-date=November 7, 2010}}</ref> and in 2003 a solo exhibition was held at the Daimaru Museum, in [[Kyoto]], Japan.{{cn|date=September 2022}}

== Personal life ==
Ritts was openly gay. He was in a relationship with entertainment lawyer Erik Hyman from 1996 until his death in 2002.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.poz.com/article/Putting-On-The-Ritts-542-3918|title=Putting on the Ritts|date=April 2003}}</ref> His parents were accepting and supportive of his sexuality.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://worldofwonder.net/bornthisday-photographer-herb-ritts-3/|title=#BornThisDay: Photographer, Herb Ritts|last=Rutledge|first=Stephen|date=August 13, 2017}}</ref> Ritts was [[HIV-positive]]. He was first diagnosed in 1989, and used alternative herbal treatments to fight his condition. He never publicly disclosed his diagnosis.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.out.com/entertainment/books/2010/09/23/herb-ritts-puttin-ritts|title=Herb Ritts: Puttin' on the Ritts|date=September 10, 2010}}</ref>

== Death ==
On December 26, 2002, Ritts died in Los Angeles from [[pneumonia]] at the age of 50.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/27/us/herb-ritts-photographer-of-celebrities-is-dead-at-50.html?pagewanted=1|title=Herb Ritts, Photographer of Celebrities, Is Dead at 50|last=Bellafante|first=Ginia|date=December 27, 2002|work=The New York Times|access-date=May 25, 2010}}</ref> According to Ritts' publicist, "Herb was HIV-positive, but this particular pneumonia was not PCP ([[pneumocystis pneumonia]]), a common [[opportunistic infection]] of AIDS. But at the end of the day, his immune system was compromised."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/ARTICLE.php?AID=1990|title=Ritts Coverage: Don't Hide the AIDS Truths|last=Signorile|first=Michelangelo|date=January 22, 2001|publisher=windycitymediagroup.com|access-date=September 13, 2010}}</ref>

==Music videos==
<!--[[Music video director]] links directly here.-->
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Year
! Title
! Artist
! class="unsortable" | Notes
|-
|1989
| "[[Cherish (Madonna song)|Cherish]]"
|[[Madonna (entertainer)|Madonna]]
|-
|1990
|"[[Love Will Never Do (Without You)]]"
|[[Janet Jackson]]
|with [[Antonio Sabàto, Jr.]] and [[Djimon Hounsou]]
|-
|rowspan="2"|1991
|"[[Wicked Game]]"
|[[Chris Isaak]]
|second version of music video; with Helena Christensen
|-
| "[[Way of the World (Tina Turner song)|Way of the World]]"
| [[Tina Turner]]
|two slightly different versions, one for the American market and the other European
|-
|1992
|"[[In the Closet]]"
|[[Michael Jackson]]
|with Naomi Campbell
|-
|1994
|"[[Please Come Home for Christmas#Jon Bon Jovi/Bon Jovi version|Please Come Home for Christmas]]"
|[[Jon Bon Jovi]]
|with Cindy Crawford
|-
|1996
|"[[Let It Flow (song)|Let It Flow]]"
|[[Toni Braxton]]
|
|-
|1998
|"[[My All]]"
|[[Mariah Carey]]
|
|-
|1999
|"[[Baby Did a Bad Bad Thing]]"
|Chris Isaak
|Remix version, with [[Laetitia Casta]]
|-
|2000
|"[[Telling Stories (song)|Telling Stories]]"
|[[Tracy Chapman]]
|
|-
|rowspan="3"|2001
|"[[Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know]]"
|[[Britney Spears]]
|
|-
|"[[Ain't It Funny]]"
|[[Jennifer Lopez]]
|
|-
|"[[Gone (NSYNC song)|Gone]]"
|[[NSYNC]]
|
|-
|2002
|"[[Underneath Your Clothes]]"
|[[Shakira]]
|
|}

== Publications ==
* ''Pictures'', Twin Palms, 1988
* ''Men/Women'', Twin Palms, 1989
* ''Duo'', Twin Palms, 1991
* ''Notorious'', Little, Brown and Company/Bulfinch, 1992
* ''Africa'', Little, Brown and Company/Bulfinch, 1994
* ''Work'', Little, Brown and Company/Bulfinch, 1996
* ''Herb Ritts'', Fondation Cartier pour l'Art Contemporain, 1999
* ''Herb Ritts L.A. Style'', Getty, 2012

== Exhibitions ==
* ''Herb Ritts: The Rock Portraits'', [[Chrysler Museum of Art]], Norfolk, VA, 2016.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chrysler.org/exhibitions/herb-ritts/|title=Chrysler Museum of Art|work=chrysler.org|access-date=March 7, 2017}}</ref>
* ''Herb Ritts: The Rock Portraits'', [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]], Cleveland, OH, 2015/16<ref>{{cite web|url=https://rockhall.com/exhibits/herb-ritts--the-rock-portraits/|title=Exhibits|work=rockhall.com|access-date=March 7, 2017}}</ref><ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2015/mar/13/herb-ritts-old-school-glamours-last-stand|title=Herb Ritts: old-school glamour's last stand|first=Scott|last=Christian|date=March 13, 2015|access-date=March 7, 2017|work=The Guardian}}</ref>
* ''Herb Ritts'', [[Museum of Fine Arts, Boston]], MA, 2015<ref name="auto" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mfa.org/exhibitions/herb-ritts|title=Herb Ritts|date=February 12, 2015|work=mfa.org|access-date=March 7, 2017}}</ref>
* ''Herb Ritts: Super'', Hamilton's Gallery, London, 2016/17<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.photography-now.com/exhibition/120173|title=Exhibition HERB RITTS: SUPER – artist, news & exhibitions |work=photography-now.com|access-date=March 7, 2017}}</ref>
* ''Herb Ritts: Super II'', Hamilton's Gallery, London, 2017<ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.vogue.me/culture/herb-ritts-super-exhibition-hamiltons-gallery/|title=Herb Ritts' Iconic Photographs of the '90s "Supers" Are Back|date=January 29, 2017|work=Vogue|access-date=March 7, 2017}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{Official website|http://www.herbritts.com}}
* [http://www.artnet.com/awc/Herb-Ritts.html Herb Ritts on artnet Monographs]
* {{IMDb name|728851|Herb Ritts}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ritts, Herb}}
[[Category:1952 births]]
[[Category:2002 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American photographers]]
[[Category:21st-century American photographers]]
[[Category:AIDS-related deaths in California]]
[[Category:American album-cover and concert-poster artists]]
[[Category:American erotic photographers]]
[[Category:American music video directors]]
[[Category:20th-century American Jews]]
[[Category:Bard College alumni]]
[[Category:Deaths from pneumonia in California]]
[[Category:American fashion photographers]]
[[Category:American gay artists]]
[[Category:Gay Jews]]
[[Category:American LGBTQ photographers]]
[[Category:People with HIV/AIDS]]
[[Category:Photographers from Los Angeles]]
[[Category:Physique photographers]]
[[Category:University High School (Los Angeles) alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century American LGBTQ people]]