Brian Aris

I started my photographic career as a photojournalist with a London agency. For nine years, I traveled the world covering major events like the civil unrest in Northern Ireland, the plight of Palestinian children in Jordan, the civil war in Lebano...

I started my photographic career as a photojournalist with a London agency. For nine years, I traveled the world covering major events like the civil unrest in Northern Ireland, the plight of Palestinian children in Jordan, the civil war in Lebanon, famine in Africa, and the Vietnam War, where I stayed until the final days in Saigon. After that, I decided to change direction and opened a studio in London. I began photographing fashion and glamour models for newspapers and magazines, working with Nina Carter and Jilly Johnston. This new path took me to exotic locations like St. Tropez and Jamaica, working with top models. Gradually, I expanded my studio work to include pop and rock stars such as Blondie, The Jam, The Clash, The Boomtown Rats, Roxy Music, and The Police. After three years, I focused entirely on the booming music industry in Britain. Over the next two decades, I covered every aspect of the music scene, from punk rock and glam rock to straight rock ‘n’ roll with the Rolling Stones, and later, the rise of boy bands and girl power with The Spice Girls. Bob Geldof commissioned me to photograph his wedding to Paula Yates and later, the all-star Band Aid line-up for the hit single “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” to help Ethiopian famine victims. I also covered the Live Aid and Live8 concerts and returned to Ethiopia with Bob to document the impact of the funds raised. I photographed many glamorous weddings, including Sting and Trudy Styler, David Bowie and Iman, Liza Minelli and David Gest, Joan Collins and Percy Gibson, and David Beckham and Victoria. In 2014, I photographed the Band Aid line-up again to raise funds for the Ebola crisis in Africa. David Linley, Princess Margaret’s son, asked me to photograph his wedding to Serena Stanhope, which led to my first Royal Family portraits. I went on to photograph the Queen Mother, Princess Margaret, and produced official portraits for the Queen’s 70th birthday and her Golden Wedding Anniversary with the Duke of Edinburgh. I also photographed the Duke and Duchess of York and the wedding of Princess Anne’s son, Peter Phillips, to Autumn Kelly, where I first photographed Kate Middleton. I’ve worked closely with Twiggy for many years, and my photos of her are displayed at The National Portrait Gallery in London. My images of Mick Jagger were featured at the Recontres D’Arles exhibition in France. In 2022, I published a limited edition coffee table book on David Bowie, followed by another on George Michael in January 2023. My archive is one of the largest individual collections in the UK.