Georges Dambier

Georges Dambier (1925–2011) began his artistic journey under painter Paul Colin, where he learned drawing and graphic design before discovering photography as Willy Rizzo’s assistant at Studio Harcourt and for Paris Match. There he mastered lighting and technical fundamentals just as Paris’s postwar nightlife exploded. Frequenting Saint‑Germain‑des‑Prés cabarets and jazz clubs, he famously captured Rita Hayworth incognito at Jimmy’s nightclub—images that landed him a job at France Dimanche as a photo‑reporter.

Though sent around the world to cover current events, Dambier’s passion for refined mise‑en‑scène led him into fashion. Encouraged by friends such as Capucine, Suzy Parker, Jacques Fath, and Brigitte Bardot, he brought warmth and spontaneity to fashion photography for Elle under Hélène Lazareff. Rejecting staid poses, he photographed models laughing and interacting with local people in Marrakech markets, Corsican villages, and the streets of Paris.

In 1954 Robert Capa invited him to head Magnum’s fashion department, but Capa’s untimely death ended that plan. Dambier then opened his Rue de la Bienfaisance studio, freelancing for Elle, Vogue, Le Jardin des Modes, Marie‑France, L’Express, and major ad campaigns for L’Oréal, Carita, and Jacques Dessange. He also created record covers and posters for Eddie Barclay and Jacques Canetti, and photographed icons of the 1960s including Johnny Hallyday, Charles Aznavour, Alain Delon, Catherine Deneuve, Jeanne Moreau, Sacha Distel, Zizi Jeanmaire, and Dalida.

In 1964 Dambier launched Twenty, a youth culture and fashion magazine that nurtured talents like Jean‑Paul Goude and Just Jaeckin. In 1976 he co‑founded the successful news‑weekly VSD, overseeing its artistic direction and photographic section. In the late 1980s he retired to the Périgord, converting his family’s mansion into a hotel that reflects his enduring taste for elegant design and decoration.