You can’t buy the Pirelli calendar, even if you had all the money in the world – except on eBay, of course. Each year Pirelli gives it out to collectors, top clients and VIPs. If you’re not on the list, no amount of arm-twisting will get you one. It is this type of exclusivity that has made it one of the world’s most collectable annual publications.
The history of the calendar stretches back more than 40 years and for each of those – save for a break from ’74 to ’78 due to the oil crisis – Pirelli has given a different photographer carte blanche to immortalise the most beautiful women in the world.
Last night I was one of the fortunate few invited to attend the launch of the 2011 edition at the Waterfront in Cape Town, and the event was suitably exclusive, too, what with Maserati Quattroporte taxis, R80-million yachts and superb Italian restaurants being part of the mix.
The highlight, however, was the unveiling of the calendar itself. Now in its 38th edition, the 2011 calendar saw none other than Karl Lagerfeld himself hold the camera. Lagerfeld chose one of his passions – Greek and Roman mythology – as the theme for the calendar and the result is a stunning collection of 36 photos showing 24 different gods, heroes and myths. The calendar was shot in black and white (another Lagerfeld favourite) and feature clean, simple and exquisitely composed photographs. This year 15 female and 5 models were used, in addition to the star attraction, American actress Julianne Moore as Hera.
If you’d like to be one of only 100 people in South Africa to own the 2011 calendar, then watch out for the January issue of CAR magazine, on sale December 20.