Cecil Beaton
1904–1980
Introduction
Sir Cecil Walter Hardy Beaton (14 January 1904 – 18 January 1980) was a British fashion, portrait and war photographer, diarist, painter, and interior designer, as well as costume designer and set designer for stage and screen. His accolades include three Academy Awards and four Tony Awards.
Wikidata identifier
Q697096
Information from Wikipedia, made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License . Accessed May 28, 2025.
Introduction
Beaten moved to New York in 1929, and signed a contract for "Vogue" magazine. Many of his images from this period have a fantastic or Surrealistic look. He did not place the emphasis on the person or the clothing, creating instead fanciful backgrounds using materials such as cellophane or mirrors to create an atmospheric effect. During the 1930s he photographed well-known cultural and society figures, such as the Duke and Duchess of Windsor and Queen Elizabeth II. Beaton was commissioned by the Ministry of Information to take photographs of London and British RAF bases during World War II. He produced images of war torn cities, his most famous image of this period being a picture of wounded child clutching a toy, which was chosen for the cover of "Life" magazine in 1941. During the 1950s and 1960s, his work concentrated on mostly the theater and cinema, creating costume and sets for the stage productions of "Gigi" (1958) and "My Fair Lady" (1964). He was knighted in 1971.
Country of birth
United Kingdom
Roles
Artist, author, designer, photographer, scenographer
ULAN identifier
500001040
Names
Cecil Beaton, Cecil Walter Hardy Beaton, Sir Cecil Beaton, Sir Cecil Walter Hardy Beaton, Walter Hardy
Information from the Getty Research Institute's Union List of Artist Names ® (ULAN), made available under the ODC Attribution License. Accessed May 28, 2025.
