Dead Douglas Kirkland, his iconic photos of Marilyn Monroe - Lifestyle

's photos

have made history.

Like those of

, still today among the most beautiful images ever taken of the actress.

His photo shoot made in 1961 for Look Magazine is legendary, where Kirkland, just 24, assistant to Irving Penn, immortalized the divine in bed wrapped only in white silk sheets (and Chanel n. 5), transforming her into the icon of sexiest cinema of all time.

The Canadian artist died in his home in Los Angeles, at 88, where he lived with his wife Francoise, with whom he had worked together for decades.

Born on August 16, 1934 in Canada, Kirkland

he was a "special photographer" on the set of over 150 films (titles of the caliber of 2001: A Space Odyssey, My Africa, Moulin Rouge, Titanic. The Great Gatsby, Australia, The Fantastic Four).

In 2014 he had come to Italy to accompany A life in pictures, an exhibition-event with a fitting title, in Venice as part of the Venice Film Festival, produced by Vanity Fair in collaboration with the Istituto Luce Cinecittà.

The questions always fell there, about

.

"Marilyn showed up three hours late - Kirkland said - then she disappeared for a moment and came back wearing only a bathrobe. There was no strobe light, just a simple constant projector that helped produce the side shadows."

Kirkland climbed onto a railing above her and began to shoot.

Marilyn looked at him, she smiled seductively at him and with those shots she delivered her to the world forever.

"She knew exactly what to do, her movements, her hands, her body was just perfect.

Better than anyone else. Emotionally, she did everything right. She expressed just what I wanted," she said.

Kirkland joined Look Magazine in his early twenties and later

.

During the golden age of photojournalism of the 60s / 70s, his assignments ranged from the Trans Siberian Railway to Japan, from fashion to cinema.

He photographed the legendary

at work and the stars of hundreds of films with unforgettable services dedicated to the world of fashion and entertainment.

In addition to Marilyn, the greatest international celebrities of cinema, art and music have posed for him, from Mick Jagger to Sophia Loren, from Coco Chanel to Elizabeth Taylor, to Marlene Dietrich and Andy Warhol, from Brigitte Bardot to Sofia Loren , to Michael Jackson, from John Lennon to Nicole Kidman, from Paul Newman to Peter Falk, Sharon Stone and dozens of others.

His photos have been exhibited all over the world, winning numerous prestigious awards and accolades, internationally, including the LUCIE Award for Outstanding Achievement in Entertainment Photography.

Already in 2008, Vanity Fair had dedicated a retrospective to him at the Milan Triennale.

Until recently, he continued to work in his villa-studio in the hills of Los Angeles, giving public lectures at the Smithsonian Institute, the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena and the Kodak Centers in Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan.

A documentary was dedicated to him,

it told the man who gave a face to pop culture for 60 years, portraying its stars.