Audrey Hepburn: Portraits of an Icon

This book contains a superlative collection of photographs of the iconic Audrey Hepburn. The front cover is a striking image captured by Jack Cardiff during the filming of "War And Peace". The photographs throughout the book are a mixture of black and white and colour - the majority are black and white. A foreward by Pim Baxter - the Acting Director of The National Portrait Gallery - shows how proud and excited the gallery was to host a collection of Audrey photographs - the book is based on that exhibition. An introduction by Audrey's son Luca Dotti reveals how happy he is the gallery have produced the exhibition, saying that it's policy of retracing history through portraits has reminded him of some of his mother's achievements. Then, Helen Trompeteler writes about Audrey "Becoming A Modern Icon" and how she became a star in the early 1950's with her energetic performance in "Roman Holiday". And right through to her memorable role in "Breakfast At Tiffany's" as a trend-setter in the 1960's. Trompeteler details a biography of Audrey, describing her trials and tribulations as a child growing up during World War Two, her early ballet career, her successful modelling work and her breakthrough into stage and movie roles. The long collaboration between Audrey and Hubert de Givenchy is detailed. As for the photographs themselves, the first section "Childhood And Early British Success" (1929-1952) shows many advertising photographs of Audrey, including Ciro's Club and Lacto-Calamine. Also, there are exciting early images from the covers of "The Dancing Times" and "ABC Film Review" publications. "American Stage And Film" (1951-1960) shows Audrey in costume and back-stage for her "Gigi" stage role. A cute and cheerful Irving Penn photograph of Audrey for "American Vogue" is one of the best in the book. Also, there is a great image of Audrey and Gregory Peck on The Spanish Steps whilst filming "Roman Holiday", and Mark Shaw's images of Audrey whilst filming "Sabrina" are captivating. Norman Parkinson's photograph of Audrey in a pink Givenchy dress at Rome's Villa Rolli during the filming of "War And Peace" is enchanting. The funniest image in the whole book is of Audrey with her fawn Ip in a Beverly Hills supermarket whilst filming "Ondine". "Film And Fashion Portraits" (1960's) include iconic images from "Breakfast At Tiffany's". There is a lively photograph from "Life" showing Audrey energetically dancing the twist with her husband Mel Ferrer, and, fantastic images of Audrey and Cary Grant in a publicity shot for "Charade" and an even better one of her with Peter O'Toole for "How To Steal A Million". Furthermore, Audrey cycling with her dog Assam in the front basket whilst on the set of "My Fair Lady" is fantastic. The final section of images "Legacy And Later Years" (1971-1993) has a great photograph of Audrey in a striking red outfit with Hubert de Givenchy, and endearing images of her UNICEF work. At the end, a chronology from Terence Pepper contains detailed information about the highlights of Audrey's life, and yet more images. And a "Further Reading" section contains many resources including books and magazine articles to examine. For all fans of Audrey Hepburn and for anyone interested in the fashion and movies of the 1950's and 1960's, this is a must-buy book.

I keep this book of Audrey Hepburn portraits in the Brown wrapper it came in to protect it. I always wash my hands before opening-this must give you some idea of the regard i have for the book and its subject, all i can say is its priceless,

Beautiful book! Came a bit bent and battered but I didn’t mind too much. Really beautiful images and little text: a great coffee table kind of book and a great Audrey fanatic book lol

To add to my collection of famous movie stars of the 50’s

I purchased the book as a wedding gift for a friend who absolutely adores it. Excellent value for money and a fabulous gift

This book brought back many memories of my youth in the 1950's & 60's. It is sometimes good to be able to re-live a part of ones past and this book did it for me.

As a fan of Audrey Hepburn I came across this coffee table book quite by chance-and I am glad I did! It is a companion piece to an Exhibition of photographs recently shown in London-but lets face it-many of the photos featured we have seen many times before-and have I am sure-in many other such books on Miss Hepburn-but you know what?-who cares!!! The photographs in this volume and the Exhibit itself have obviously been chosen with such love and care that she could be pictured wearing a paper bag on her head-and I and many other people would love it! If you are a fan of Audrey Hepburn or not I am pretty sure you will find something in this book to enjoy! I have MANY photographic books on Miss Hepburn but I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the quality and contents of this particular volume and I would recommend it to anyone out there interested in the classic era of Hollywood and of the lovely Audrey Hepburn herself-a wonderful tribute!!

Very happy with the purchase

Ich bin wirklich einer der größten Audrey-Fans, schon seit Jahrzehnten. Ich habe schon über 40 Bücher (u.a. auch aus Japan), aber ich muß sagen, dass es immer noch Neuerscheinungen gibt, die sich lohnen. Portrait of an Icon gehört absolut dazu! Darin sind Bilder, die man noch nicht kennt, oder andere in schönen Vergrößerungen. Der Preis ist total o.k. Der Artikel ist schön gebunden und die Fotos sind in hervorragender Qualität!

Premetto che sono un grafico editoriale e l'occhio mi cade sulle cose tecniche, ma anche nella sostanza è un libro davvero ben fatto. Ho sfogliato il libro prima di regalarlo e sono rimasto piacevolmente colpito per la qualità. L'impaginazione e la qualità del lavoro editoriale è davvero notevole, come la qualità delle fotografie, della stampa e della rilegatura. È un libro che vale assolutamente quello che costa. Ricco di contenuti e di immagini che accompagnano tutta la vita della Hepburn. L'ho regalato alla mia ragazza che è appassionatissima dell'attrice e se n'è innamorata.

Got it for a friend who is a huge Audrey Hepburn fan. She loved it, said it was one of her favorite birthday presents. Lots of cool pictures and info to read through

Superbe livre les photos sont splendides

The photos and text were very well done.