Guy Louis Bourdin was a French fashion photographer and perhaps the first photographer to create a complex narrative, then snatch a moment — sensual, provocative, shocking, exotic, surrealistic, sometimes sinister — and simply associate it with a fashion item. The narratives were strange and mysterious, sometimes full of violence, sexuality, and surrealism. Bourdin was influenced by his mentor Man Ray, photographer Edward Weston, the surrealist painters...

French fashion photographer Guy Bourdin (b. 1928 - d. 1991) was one of the first fashion photographers to create a complex narrative and then capture the overpowering mood of a single moment, whether it was provocative, exotic, surrealistic, or even sinister. Influenced by his mentor Man Ray, surrealist painters Magritte and Balthaus, and filmmaker Luis Buñuel, Bourdin's work similarly continues to inspire photographers worldwide.

French fashion photographer Guy Bourdin (b. 1928 - d. 1991) was one of the first fashion photographers to create a complex narrative and then capture the overpowering mood of a single moment, whether it was provocative, exotic, surrealistic, or even sinister. Influenced by his mentor Man Ray, surrealist painters Magritte and Balthaus, and filmmaker Luis Buñuel, Bourdin's work similarly continues to inspire photographers worldwide.