At 17, inspired by the defiant spirit he saw in the various music magazines of the day, Anton Corbijn picked up his father’s camera and never looked back. By 1979, he was in London, capturing a photo of his beloved Joy Division at Lancaster Gate tube station. A year later, Ian Curtis’s death would transform the image into an icon, and cement Corbijn’s place in photography’s rock-n-roll hall of fame.
“ I like people finding my work somewhere, that’s what I always liked about magazines, you accidentally meet your work if you publish in magazines, and I’ve always liked that.”
Throughout his career, with a camera always as his cover, Corbijn has built countless profound relationships with artists and musicians of every kind and creative persuasion, capturing their essence through his raw, unfiltered reportage style. None are more profound than his 40-year collaboration with Depeche Mode, a deeply prolific relationship that began in 1986, which has propelled both Corbijn and the band into cult-like heroes.
Today, continuously pushing himself forward, his relentless vision and unwavering ambition have made him a pioneer in image-making and visual storytelling. From album covers to set design, and music videos to filmmaking, he is constantly pushing the boundaries of his craft, always inserting his unmistakable personality into every project and idea; leading him to fertile collaborations with legends like George Clooney, REM, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and U2, and establishing him as one of the most influential creators of the 20th century.
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