31/08/2026
Today we are celebrating what would have been Donyale Luna’s 81st birthday.
Born in Detroit, Michigan, as Peggy Ann Freeman, the American model, actress and artist moved to New York in the early 1960s, after photographer David McCabe had discovered her. Luna broke major racial barriers in the fashion industry: in 1965, she was the first Black model to appear on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar, and in 1966 on the cover of British Vogue. She had an intense, creative collaboration with Richard Avedon but moved on to Europe after their collaboration ended. There, she worked with renowned photographers such as Helmut Newton, David Bailey and William Klein and reached new highs in her career. She was named “Model of the Year” by Vogue and earned the title “hottest model in Europe” from Time magazine. Before moving to Europe, she collaborated with Andy Warhol and appeared in several of his experimental films. Once in Europe, she continued to star in European arthouse and avant-garde films.
Her artistry was centered around the persona she created: Donyale Luna. Inspired by Surrealism and Josephine Baker, she used the persona of Donyale to articulate a new concept of Black beauty and identity within predominantly white fashion and cultural spaces. In her advertising and editorial work, she used exaggerated poses and angular body language in order to challenge the conventional representations of Black femininity. Yesterday, we shared one of our “From the Archives” posts, starring Luna in Queen magazine. Today, we honor her birthday by sharing this newly discovered portrait of her and Helmut Newton, taken by June Newton a.k.a. Alice Springs in Paris in the 1960s.
Alice Springs, Helmut Newton with Donyale Luna, Rue Aubriot, Paris 1960s © Helmut Newton Foundation.
