Fashion Photographer Bill Cunningham Dies

Posted by Eric Mayer on Jun 27, 2016 in News | 0 comments

Legendary fashion photographer Bill Cunningham passed away on Saturday in New York City, aged 87.

A longtime fashion photographer for The New York Times, he was hospitalized recently after suffering a stroke. Cunningham, a pioneer of ‘street style’ photography was known for taking candid pictures of everyday people on the streets of New York and riding his Schwinn bicycle wearing a signature blue jacket.

The New York Times wrote an obituary for him. ‘To see a Bill Cunningham street spread was to see all of New York,’ New York Times Executive Editor Dean Baquet said in a tweet posted to the newspaper’s Twitter account Saturday afternoon.

Born on March 13, 1929, Cunningham began his career as a milliner and later freelance writing for the Chicago Tribune and Women’s Wear Daily. He later became a contributor to the New York Times in the early 1970s for which he worked as a photographer for 40 years, up until his death.

In 1983 and 1993 he was honored by the Council of Fashion Designers of America. In 2010 he was the subject of documentary, ‘Bill Cunningham New York,’ while in 2014, the New-York Historical Society featured a series of photographs he took long before his legendary Times style column, On the Street.

Much of the fashion world including Gigi Hadid, Naomi Campbell, Zac Posen, took to social media to pay tribute to Cunningham.

‘I remember being almost starstruck the first time Bill Cunningham stepped in front of me w/ his camera on the street. He’s told incredible real-life fashion stories with his photos, and his spirit will live forever in the industry,’ Gigi wrote in a tweet.

Naomi Campbell shared a photo of the iconic photographer on Instagram with the caption: ‘Dear Bill Cunningham got to know you since #1986, you always had the biggest smile that would light up a city, always called me kid when I was way beyond one. And So elegant you always was. So sad to lose you such a great man with a beautiful soul. Going to the Met Ball and any other big fashion red carpets will not be the same without you. I love you always, condolences to your family.’

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