Gilles Bensimon
Gilles Bensimon
In september, 2025, Oana Ivan Gallery presents a solo exhibition dedicated to Gilles Bensimon, the legendary photographer whose lens has shaped the aesthetics of fashion and influenced the representation of women for over four decades.
The relationship between Oana Ivan and Gilles Bensimon is grounded in a deep professional and artistic bond. For more than fifteen years, the two have collaborated closely,united by a shared sensibility and a refined visual instinct. When Oana Ivan launched Frame/Book/Magazine, a publication celebrating image and contemporary creativity, Gilles Bensimon’s involvement was a natural choice—his visual signature played a key role in shaping the identity and spirit of the project. Their many shared shoots—from Cuba to Mexico—were driven by a pursuit of light, grace, and authenticity, and led them to encounter and collaborate with leading figures such as Yvon Lambert, Roberto Fabelo, and Adel Abdessemed.
This exhibition brings together around fifty works created between 1986 and 2021. Iconic images and lesser-known prints are displayed side by side, forming a visual narrative imbued with freshness, elegance, and freedom. Moving between art and fashion - a duality at the heart of his work - Gilles Bensimon redefined the visual codes of femininity, transcending genres. Often called a photographer “of women,” Bensimon is above all a photographer for women. He liberated the image of the female body without ever objectifying it, capturing strong, radiant, and independent figures in all their intensity. He profoundly reimagined how women are photographed—not as static icons or muses, but as partners in a shared creative vision. His work is an ode to presence, intimacy, and fleeting beauty..
A close friend of designers such as Karl Lagerfeld and Azzedine Alaïa, Bensimon played a key role in launching the careers of countless icons. His timeless and intuitive gaze became a visual language of its own - an exception in the world of photography, marked by his ability to capture the invisible: an attitude, a breath, a mystery
“Everything I have, I owe to women,” he says. For Bensimon, a portrait should always hold an element of surprise, of shadow. His goal: to make “timeless images that still say something about the moment.” It’s a pursuit that he continues with tireless precision, often shadowed by doubt: “I’m never fully satisfied with my photographs.” Perhaps this restlessness is what drives him forward, always searching, always shooting. When asked about his favorite photograph, he replies: “It’s the one I’ll take tomorrow.”
From Linda Evangelista (1989) to Hailey Bieber (2017), including Azzedine Alaïa (1994), Gisele
Bündchen (2000), and Charlize Theron (2001), the women in his photographs embody a
constantly renewed sense of youth and a grace untouched by time.
Gilles Bensimon, Alexander McQueen, 2001-2002, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 2 of 6 (2025)
71 x 112,2 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 44 1/5 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Famke Janssen, 1992, Color print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,6 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 1/2 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Edita Vilkevičiūtė, 2013, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,3 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 3/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Linda Evangelista, 1989, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 2 of 6 (2025)
71 x 50,2 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 3/4 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Elle and friends, ca. 1987, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 50,5 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 7/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Gisele Bündchen, 2005, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 58 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 22 7/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Naomi Campbell, 1994, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
51,9 x 71 x 3,5 cm | 20 3/8 x 28 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Elle Macpherson, 1986, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
47 x 71 x 3,5 cm | 18 1/2 x 28 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Gisele Bündchen, 2000, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 59,1 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 23 1/4 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Sara Sampaio, 2016, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,3 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 3/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Alek Wek, 1997, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 58 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 22 7/8 x 1 3/8 (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Elle Macpherson, 1987, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 51,7 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 20 3/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Elle Macpherson, 2022, Colour print on baryta paper (2025), Edition 1 of 6
71 x 94,1 3,5 cm | 28 x 37 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Catherine McNeil, 2014, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,2 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 3/8, 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Bianca Balti, 2011, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 2 of 6 (2025)
49,2 x 71 x 3,5 cm | 19 3,8 x 28 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Ines de la Fressange, Galerie des Glaces, Château de Versailles, 2014, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
49,2 x 71 x 3,5 cm | 19 3/8 x 28 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Alek Wek, 1998, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 56,3 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 22 1/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Alek Wek, ca. 1990, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 71 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 28 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Elizabeth Hurley, 2000, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 69,4 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 27 3/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Azzedine Alaïa, 1994, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 2 of 6 (2025)
70 x 71 x 3,5 cm | 27 1/2 x 28 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Tina Turner, 1987, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 68,2 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 26 7/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Charlize Theron, 2001, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 54,1 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 21 1/4 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Carla Bruni, 1998, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 57,3 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 22 1/2 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Teyana Taylor, 2021, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 71 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 28 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Hailey Bieber, 2017, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,3 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 21 1/4 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Alek Wek, 1997, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 57,6 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 22 5/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Alek Wek, 1998, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 57,6 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 22 5/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Sandra Magalhais & Yves Saint Laurent's Office, 2002, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 123,3 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 48 1/2 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Halle Berry, ca. 1990, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 59 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 23 1/4 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Gisele Bündchen, 2005, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 58,3 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 23 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Christy Turlington for Oribe, 2014, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 58,2 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 22 7/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Salma Hayek, 2020, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 58,3 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 23 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Ava Max, 2022, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,3 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 3/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Alanna Arrington, 2018, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,3 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 3/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Mathilde Pedersen, 1999, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 71 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 28 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Nina Agdal, 2017, Black and white print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,3 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 3/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Edita Vilkevičiūtė, 2014, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,2 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 3/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Claudia Schiffer, ca.1980, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,5 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 1/2 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Ming Xi, 2016, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,2 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 3/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Ming Xi, 2016, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
42,9 x 71 x 3,5 cm | 16 7/8 x 28 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Ming Xi, 2016, Colour print on baryta paper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 49,2 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 19 3/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Ming Xi, 2016, Colour print on baryta peper, Edition 1 of 6 (2025)
49,2 x 71 x 3,5 | 19 3/8 x 28 x 1 3/8 in (framed)
Gilles Bensimon, Ming Xi, 2016, Colour print on baryta paper, Edtion 1 of 6 (2025)
71 x 93 x 3,5 cm | 28 x 36 5/8 x 1 3/8 in (framed)