Richard Avedon was born on May 15, 1923 in New York City. His mother and father had job centered in the fashion industry. His mother came from a family that manufactured dressed, accompanied by the fact that his father had ownership of a shop name “Avedon’s 5th Avenue”. It was no surprise that fashion had caught Richard’s eye. Along with his admiration for fashion, he enjoyed taking photos of the clothing as well, joining a camera club named the Young Men’s Hebrew Association.
One day, Avedon and his father were walking down the street looking through shop windows when he noticed a man with a camera. The man was attempting to photograph a woman against a tree. He recalls the man adjusting her dress and taking photos. He said he hadn’t understood why he had her posed against the tree until he had seen the exact same photo in Harper's Bazaar. The dress and the tree has corresponded the same peeling bark. This event was influential to Avedon’s passion for photography and fashion.
Avedon eventually signed up for the United States Merchant Marines, his job was to take photos of sailors for identification. After resigning from the Merchant Marines, he went to New York City to study photography. He soon was hired to work for a magazine photographing fashion shows in Paris. He is well known for one of his works he did while photographing a circus, the piece was called “Dovima with Elephants”. Avedon did many other projects and features that have given him great praise for his work and skills. He was best known for his “work in the fashion world and for his minimalist, large-scale character-revealing portraits”.
Link for information used: https://www.biography.com/people/richard-avedon-9193034