Mario Testino opens major solo exhibition in Venice with Patricia Low Contemporary
Mario Testino, Horses (II), Urtasaray, Uzbekistan, 2023. Digitally produced C-type print. © Mario Testino
VENICE.—
Patricia Low Contemporary is presenting Mario Testino, a major exhibition bringing together a carefully curated selection of works by one of the world’s most celebrated photographers. The exhibition marks Testino’s return to the gallery following the success of his acclaimed presentation in Gstaad, opening during the 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia.
Bringing together iconic fashion portraits, monumental floral compositions, still lifes and recent equine studies, the exhibition reflects the remarkable breadth of Testino’s practice and his continuing evolution beyond the world of fashion photography into contemporary fine art.
Few cities provide a more fitting setting for this dialogue than Venice. Long synonymous with beauty, craftsmanship and spectacle, the city’s artistic legacy—from Renaissance harmony to the decorative richness of the Rococo—forms an elegant backdrop against which Testino’s photographs unfold. Throughout the exhibition, portraiture, nature and decorative arts converge, revealing photography’s enduring ability to preserve beauty whilst continually reimagining it.
Among the exhibition’s highlights are celebrated portraits of Stella Tennant, Daria Werbowy and Vittoria Ceretti, alongside Testino’s acclaimed Meissen series, in which eighteenth-century porcelain vessels become portrait subjects in their own right. Rich in ornament and mythology, these works resonate with Venice’s long tradition of decorative arts and craftsmanship.
Nature forms a further thread throughout the exhibition. Monumental floral works, including London (2019) and Tokyo (II) (2018–19), draw inspiration from Japanese visual traditions, transforming flowers into immersive compositions that celebrate both abundance and impermanence. These are presented alongside Testino’s recent equine portraits, a body of work that reflects his growing fascination with photographing animal subjects with the same sensitivity and psychological depth that have long characterised his portraits of people.
While Mario Testino’s name remains synonymous with fashion photography, recent years have seen his artistic practice expand significantly beyond editorial commissions. Increasingly focused on still life, botanical studies, animals and photography’s dialogue with art history, his work demonstrates an ongoing commitment to photography as an autonomous artistic medium. This exhibition reflects that evolution, positioning Testino not only as one of the defining image-makers of his generation, but as an artist whose practice continues to evolve through new subjects, new contexts and new dialogues.
Presented in Venice, Mario Testino invites audiences to experience photography as a medium that bridges fashion, portraiture and fine art, revealing beauty not simply as something to be observed, but as something continually constructed, interpreted and renewed.
Mario Testino (b. 1954, Lima, Peru) is internationally recognised as one of the most influential photographers of the contemporary era. Over a career spanning more than four decades, he has redefined the visual language of fashion and portrait photography through an unmistakable style characterised by elegance, vitality and psychological intimacy.
His photographs have appeared in leading international publications including Vogue, Vanity Fair, V Magazine and GQ, while his collaborations with fashion houses such as Dior, Gucci, Chanel, Burberry, Versace, Dolce & Gabbana and Valentino have helped shape the visual identity of luxury fashion for generations.
Testino is equally renowned for his portraits of some of the world’s most recognisable cultural figures, including Diana, Princess of Wales, Kate Moss, Gisele Bündchen, Naomi Campbell, Stella Tennant and countless artists, actors, musicians and members of international royalty. His 1997 portraits of Diana remain among the most iconic royal photographs ever produced.
Alongside his celebrated fashion imagery, Testino’s practice has increasingly expanded into contemporary fine art. Through ambitious bodies of work additionally exploring still life, botanical compositions, landscape and animal portraiture, he continues to investigate photography’s capacity to elevate everyday subjects into enduring cultural images. His work is held in major public and private collections worldwide and has been exhibited internationally across museums, institutions and galleries.
