Fashion Flashback: The Making of Pirelli Calendars

As part of FashionTV’s 15th anniversary, we are happy to share with you some of the best fashion moments in history.

Take a moment to re-discover our exclusive coverage on the Making of Pirelli Calendars. The anticipation, exotic locations and A-list models and photographers to take part in the project have turned the Pirelli Calendars into one of the most coveted annual fashion calendars.

Making of Pirelli 2009

Photographer Peter Beard shot the 2009 Pirelli Calendar in one of the most exotic places on earth – Botswana. The African motifs and animals, which included giant elephants and meerkats, served as a breathtaking background for the photoshoot. Top models Daria Werbowy, Lara Stone, Isabeli Fontana and others posed for Beard, while wallowing in the mud, feeding the elephants, and even holding remains of a huge bird.

Beard also photographed Lara Stone lying down surrounded many human skulls creating an unforgettable picture. Though it was a very challenging photoshoot technically, the 2009 Pirelli Calendar may be one of the best that’s ever been produced.

Making of Pirelli 2004

Sexy photoshoots are what the Pirelli Calendars represent at their core, with naked or half-naked models posing in amazing locales. This issue of Pirelli Calendar was something totally different in terms of its sex appeal on set. Photographer Nick Knight took stunning models such as Karolina Kurkova, Natalia Vodianova and Mariacarla Boscono and had them pose with hot half-naked firefighters.

The result, as seen in the clip, is quite sexy in its own right. In one of the pictures, top model Karolina Kurkova is surrounded by men who appear enslaved, begging for her mercy. According to Kurkova, this is the sexiest photo shoot she has ever done.

Making of Pirelli 2002

The Pirelli Calendar has changed considerably along the years. The Making Of clip shows that life at the beginning of the 21st century was much more innocent. Talented photographer Peter Lindbergh was behind the camera of the 2002 cal, creating a sexy-yet-innocent calendar. This wasn’t the first Pirelli Calendar for Lindbergh. He also shot the Cal’s 1996 issue.

This time Lindbergh decided to use actresses instead of models. The photoshoot took place at Universal Studios, and according to many photographers and journalists, it is the most challenging Pirelli Calendar. Do you share the same opinion?