Olivier Zahm ― A Photographic Diary of Fashion, Art, and Sex

The man behind Purple magazine is the chronicler of his generation, exposing the lifestyles of the creative elite through his intimate, autobiographical photographs. Purple magazine has gained cult status during the span of its twenty-year history, and its editor Olivier Zahm has become a celebrity in the international fashion world. Notorious for his obsessive photographic documentation of his life and surroundings, which he shares daily with a huge fan base on his blog purple DIARY, Zahm said to the New York Times in 2010, "Even in the bedroom I have my camera, I sleep with my camera, I have lunch with my camera, I go to dinner with my camera and I’m recording my experience." Presented in the form of a free-flowing personal scrapbook, the book follows Zahm through a fantasyland populated by the artists, socialites, models, and celebrities who regularly appear in his magazine, such as Terry Richardson, Karl Lagerfeld, Andre Saraiva, Dash Snow, Lindsay Lohan, Chloe Sevigny, Daphne Guinness, Carine Roitfeld, Nate Lowman, Leigh Lezark, and Kate Moss. His idealistic belief in creative and sexual freedom is made evident in the many nude portraits of female friends and lovers. This voluminous book is an important historical document of our times, exposing the lifestyle and inspirations behind Purple magazine, which has had a profound influence on the approach to contemporary fashion photography.

Olivier Zahm was an art critic for Artforum and Flash Art before cofounding Purple magazine in 1992 with Elein Fleiss. Zahm is also an artistic director for fashion brands such as Yves Saint Laurent, a renowned photographer and artist, and has contributed to exhibitions at such venues as P.S.1, New York; The Museum of Modern Art, Paris; and the Pompidou Center, Paris. Glenn O’Brien is a famous writer, editor, and creative director. Donatien Grau is a critic, writer, and academic who has written on contemporary art in France and internationally.