The Lavazza Calendar has lengthy been a prestigious platform for the world’s most acclaimed photographers, with a historical past that includes names like Helmut Newton, Annie Leibovitz, and Steve McCurry. For its 2026 version, unveiled this week at Artwork Basel Miami Seashore, the Italian espresso large has turned to Magnum Photographs legend Alex Webb to seize a “most genuine essence of Italy”.
Titled “Pleasure Makes Us Human”, the thirty fourth version of the calendar explores the “intangible but universally recognizable” high quality of “Italianness”. Reasonably than counting on postcards or clichés, Lavazza engaged Webb, recognized for capturing placing and insightful road photos, most recognisable by their daring colours. The pictures he and the group have created for this 12 months’s calendar encapsulate visible narratives that discover magnificence and intrigue within the spontaneous rhythm of day by day life.
A “Grand Tour” of Gentle and Shadow
The venture is conceived as a contemporary “Grand Tour” spanning the Italian peninsula from north to south. The 14 pictures weave collectively landscapes and day by day routines, from the quiet dignity of an Artwork Nouveau barbershop in Genoa to the non secular depth of the Feast of Santa Rosalia in Palermo.
Webb, who has been a member of Magnum since 1979 and is widely known for his advanced, layered road pictures, introduced his signature aesthetic to the venture. Recognized for utilizing “dramatic shadows” and “audacious geometries,” Webb’s photos for the calendar are permeated by heat, vibrant colours. Nevertheless, when requested about magnificence in his work, Webb acknowledged that he’s “extra snug with a time period like resonance”. He’s not on the lookout for the “great thing about a postcard” however a “sophisticated magnificence” as a result of he feels that method authentically displays the advanced great thing about the world. Whereas commissioned work entails fashions and a artistic group, Webb defined that when they get into the state of affairs, it turns into “extra serendipitous”. He seeks out “moments which might be basically unsure” within the composition of his topics, noting that commissioned work succeeds greatest when it retains “a way of the uncertainty of life”.
Talking to me through video hyperlink, Webb revealed a private connection to the venture’s setting: his historical past with Italy dates again to 1957, when, aged simply 5, he took his first journey to Europe. The three-month journey together with his household included a month in Italy. “It is a resonance with issues prior to now,” Webb mirrored, recalling vivid recollections of the meals, together with the roast beef in Rome and his first style of wine in Pisa.
Inside The Course of
Webb shot the complete venture over simply 12-13 days in July, with preliminary discussions beginning as early as April. The ultimate choice was made in August, and the ultimate firming was accomplished by early September.
True to his road pictures roots, Webb stored his setup minimal, describing his digital camera as merely “an extension of the attention”. He shot a lot of the calendar on a Leica rangefinder with a 35mm lens, deviating to a 28mm lens for less than a single image.
The enhancing course of stayed true to Webb’s documentary type, with firming being “not terrifically dramatic,” primarily consisting of “including a little bit vibrancy, possibly opening it up a little bit bit”. He works together with his printer to create match prints to make sure colour consistency for each the bodily calendar and the Artwork Basel exhibition prints. The one digital enhancements made to the imagery had been to make sure the readability of the cups. “We did some further work on the precise espresso cups to ensure that they had been clearly the [Lavazza] cups.”
The ultimate choice of 14 photos was a collaborative effort, with photos chosen for his or her “visible and emotional resonance”. Webb famous that for probably the most half, the artistic group selected those that he notably needed.
Capturing the “Pleasure and Play”
The calendar’s imagery strikes away from standard iconography, defined Michele Mariani. Mariani is the Government Inventive Director of Armando Testa Group, the longstanding advert company that works with Lavazza to supply the annual calendars. Talking forward of the launch, he stated that they needed to keep away from stereotypes, and as a substitute create a “journey into Italianness”.
For Webb, the venture was about capturing extra than simply food and drinks; it was about “pleasure and play”. He famous that motifs like cotton sweet, balloons, balls, and leaping youngsters – all parts that usually seem in his wider physique of labor – characterize a “response to, you recognize, the small pleasures in life” and the “risk of enjoyment, even in fairly tough locations”. Ten years previous to this venture, Webb photographed espresso harvesting in Guatemala, the place it’s central to the financial system, but in addition the tradition. His work usually brings focus to folks in locations that hardly ever get mass media consideration.
Calendar Highlights
Might: An intriguing picture depicting a person having fun with a quiet second with espresso, whereas a woman walks a canine within the background. Using shadow, composition, colour and perspective provides the shot a surreal really feel.
June: A younger girl having fun with the ritual of espresso and focaccia, a scene punctuated by “resonating-colored parts”.
December: A vibrant night time time celebration scene, with two girls dancing and singing on a balcony. The gradual shutter accentuates the motion and power of the second.
You possibly can see all the pictures and discover out extra in regards to the 2026 Lavazza Calendar, in addition to get your individual copy on Lavazza’s web site.
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