Jewish Photographer Raising Awareness of AIDS in America

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS

Kerie Campbell, Member of WORLD Postcard Annie Leibovitz Photographer This postcard features a great photograph of Kerie Campbell. The woman's nude body is covered in body paint.

Through her portraits, Jewish photographer Annie Leibovitz fights stigma, raises awareness and puts a human face on AIDS. In 1986, Leibovitz photographed a Kenneth Cole ad to raise awareness of AIDS in America. That effort continued in a series of projects including the INSPI(RED) and Be Here for the Cure campaigns. These have been defining moments in the history of the epidemic including her photograph of Kerie Campbell, a mom and artist who lost custody of her children  because she was HIV positive. This summer The Bronx Museum of the Arts presents "Art AIDS America," an exhibition examining the ongoing influence of the AIDS crisis on American art and culture and it features Leibovitz's photograph of Kerie Campbell.

Kerie Campbell and family

In 1993, celebrated photographer Annie Leibovitz captured some of the very first public images of people living with AIDS for a foundation campaign. It was a defining moment in the history of the epidemic.

The Gap Do The (Red) Thing campaign was launched in 2006 with a print advertising campaign developed at Laird and Partners, featuring photographs by Annie Leibovitz.

Kenneth Cole’s first ad to raise awareness of AIDS in America sought to shatter the public silence about the threat and spread of the virus. Photographed by Annie Leibovitz, the ad ran gratis from March- December 1986 in 23 magazines across the country. Models went shoeless: Cole says he didn’t want to be accused of exploiting the issue.