Duane Michals Photographs Jacob Elordi for Bottega Veneta
Italian luxury brand Bottega Veneta launched a new ad campaign featuring actor Jacob Elordi, captured in evocative black-and-white photos by Duane Michals.
Creative Collaboration
This marks the first collaboration since Louise Trotter unveiled her debut collection as Bottega Veneta’s creative director during the Milan Spring 2026 shows in September.
Duane Michals’ Artistic Style
Michals is renowned for his “Sequences” series—images that tell intriguing, unresolved stories enhanced by handwritten captions. Many works explore themes of queer sensuality, notably The Spirit Leaves the Body (1968), where a nude man’s spirit seems to rise off the bed toward the viewer.
“My photographs are about questions. They are not about answers,” Michals explained in an interview.
Campaign Title and Imagery
The campaign, shot at Michals’s New York home, is titled What Are Dreams, inspired by a 1994 photograph accompanied by a handwritten poem. That image depicts a young man appearing to sleep beside a snow globe featuring iconic New York City landmarks. It was later featured in Michals’s book Questions Without Answers (2002).
Campaign Elements
- Black-and-white photographs
- Video component
- Focus on dreamlike, enigmatic visuals
Author’s Summary
This campaign merges Duane Michals’s distinctive narrative photography with Jacob Elordi’s presence, creating a poetic dialogue on dreams and unanswered questions.