Ewa-Mari Johansson

Swedish photographer Ewa-Mari Johansson ranks among the pioneers in female fashion photography, having worked for all the major brands and magazines.

Johansson started working as a professional photographer in the 80s. Her career took off quickly, and she soon worked for magazines like Harper’s Bazaar, Donna, Amica, Elle and Cosmopolitan.

At this time, a new generation of top models was at the front end of the lens, with names like Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss, Linda Evangelista, Helena Christensen, Claudia Schiffer, Carla Bruni, Stella Tennant and Karen Elson.

Johansson became a pioneer as one of the first influential female fashion photographers, but also by placing her models in new environments, at the time considered typical male playgrounds, like bars and snooker halls.

However, at this time, Johansson was no stranger to the camera and the studio.

In the 1970s, she was ranked among the top models in the world long before the term supermodel was coined. She frequently could be seen in fashion shoots in magazines like Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Elle and Marie Claire, and for several years she was the commercial face for hair colouring brand Clairol.

Behind the camera, you would often find the most important fashion photographers of the time, like David Bailey, Guy Bourdain and Patrick Demarchelier.

Ewa-Mari Johansson has published several books and exhibited her work in museums and galleries worldwide.