It is one of the most prized calendars in the world and in its 40th edition tyre manufacturer Pirelli brought in Steve McCurry, one of the world’s most renowned photographers to work on “The Cal”.
To the untrained eye there are heaps of great looking women and excellent imagery of Brazil that makes up the 34 colorful images in the 2013 Pirelli Calendar.
However, to the keen observer of social change McCurry recounts the recent social and economic transformation of Brazil. His work celebrates the beauty and colours that represent the soul of this magical South American country, which takes centre stage in the Pirelli Calendar for the third time, following Patrick Demarchelier’s 2005 edition and Terry Richardson’s in 2010.
The Calendar contains 23 portraits of actresses and models, nine images depicting bits and pieces of daily life, and two pictures entirely composed of graffiti and murals. These represent an expression of popular artistic expression that attracted McCurry’s attention with their ability to reflect the social aspects he was interpreting, and became the background in many photographs.
The 2013 Pirelli Calendar tells its tales through faces drawn in graffiti and ordinary people, as well as through this year’s models whose common thread is a powerful commitment to foundations, humanitarian projects and non-governmental organizations.
“I tried to portray Brazil, its landscape, its economy and its culture, along with the human element” said McCurry.