Duane Michals Photographs Jacob Elordi for Bottega Veneta
The Italian luxury brand Bottega Veneta has launched a new campaign featuring actor Jacob Elordi, captured by photographer Duane Michals. This collaboration marks the first since creative director Louise Trotter presented her debut collection for the house at the Milan Spring 2026 shows.
Campaign Concept and Visual Style
The campaign is named after Michals's 1994 photograph and poem, What Are Dreams. It presents a series of dreamy black-and-white images shot at Michals's New York home, accompanied by a video. The campaign’s title references Michals's 1994 work, which shows a young man appearing to sleep on a table next to a snow globe featuring iconic New York City landmarks.
Duane Michals’s Artistic Signature
Michals is renowned for his “Sequences” series—collections of photographs that narrate mysterious stories without clear resolutions, often enhanced by his handwritten captions. His work frequently explores queer sensuality, exemplified by his famous 1968 image The Spirit Leaves the Body, which depicts the spirit rising from the body of a nude man lying on a bed.
“My photographs are about questions. They are not about answers.”
Legacy of What Are Dreams
The original What Are Dreams image was published in Michals's acclaimed 2002 book Questions Without Answers. The photograph combines a poetic narrative with a mysterious, dreamlike visual, which the new Bottega Veneta campaign reinterprets through the presence of Jacob Elordi.
Artistic and Brand Collaboration
- First collaboration following Louise Trotter’s arrival as Bottega Veneta’s creative director
- Integration of Michals’s signature style that blends narrative and photographic art
- Use of black-and-white photography to evoke a timeless, introspective mood
An evocative blend of enigmatic visuals and poetic storytelling, this campaign breathes new life into Michals’s enduring themes through a contemporary fashion perspective.
Author’s summary: The new Bottega Veneta campaign creatively revives Duane Michals’s poetic photography with Jacob Elordi, marking a fresh chapter under Louise Trotter’s direction through striking black-and-white imagery.