words by Carol King
The latest edition of the Pirelli Calendar features photographs of Rio di Janeiro taken by American photojournalist Steve McCurry – and there’s not a nude in sight.
The Italian tyre company’s calendar is now in its 40th edition. It is known as the ultimate girly calendar, often portraying artistic nudes. In the past, the calendar has included images of top actresses and models such as Sophia Loren, Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss. The calendar is famous for its exclusivity, and is given to important clients and celebrities.
The calendar highlights the work of top photographers and past collaborators include Herb Ritz, Richard Avedon and Annie Leibovitz. This year’s photographer, McCurry is reported as saying he wanted to “portray women who are sexy without being naked.”
The 2013 calendar contains 34 total images and 23 portraits set in Rio landscapes, depicting its favela shantytowns, colourful markets and tumbling capoeira dancers. Among the 11 models, actresses and singers who appear in the calendar are Brazilian actress Sonia Braga, Tunisian model Hanaa Ben Abdesslem, Brazilian singer Marisa Monte, Czech model Petra Nemcova, Italian-Egyptian actress Elisa Sednaoui, and American models Summer Rayne Oakes, Karlie Kloss and Kyleigh Kuhn. Brazilian model and actress Adriana Lima also features, and she is the first visibly pregnant woman shown in the calendar.
