Gianfranco Gorgoni was born in Rome on December 24th 1941, to Italian actress Olga Gorgoni. Sadly at the age of 12 he lost his mother and moved to her home town of Bomba in the Abruzzo region to live with his grandparents. In his 20’s he moved to Milan where he gained some success as a commercial and fashion photographer.

In 1968 he came to the United States with the idea of producing a photographic essay on New York artists and returning home in a few months. Instead he became so involved with the project that he remained in New York. At this time he became a close acquaintance of famed Italian gallerist Leo Castelli. Through his mentorship he was introduced to many of the upcoming artists of the day. During this time he became a photojournalist traveling throughout the world, documenting world leaders, dignitaries and some of the most important events of the time.

He continued to pursue his photojournalism assignments and photographing artists whenever he had the opportunity. His innate charisma and talent helped him persuade artists to relax in front of his camera and allowed him to capture rare moments.

Throughout his career he shot many of the pop artists of the 70’s and 80’s the likes of Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Roy Lichtenstein and Keith Haring. He also photographed other artists such as Georgia O’Keefe, Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg and Joseph Beuys, not to mention authors like Truman Capote, Norman Mailer and Allen Ginsberg.

One of his real passions was land art, where he accompanied many artists like Christo along with his wife Jean-Claude, Robert Smithson, Michael Heizer and Walter De Maria, where he would cover the construction of their projects and not just the final pieces. Many of which are lost to time and only remain immortalized through his work.

On September 11, 2019 after a battle with cancer Gianfranco passed away at his home in Harlem surrounded by his family and loved ones. Although he is no longer with us, his memory and legacy live on through his art.