Quick Facts
Biography
Firooz Zahedi (born 1949) is an American photographer of Iranian descent.
Life and Work
Firooz Zahedi was born in Tehran, Iran in 1949. His family moved to England where he received his secondary education. In 1969 he came to the US to attend Georgetown University in Washington DC. After graduating with a degree in Foreign Service in 1973, he served briefly as a diplomat for the former government of Iran but resigned to go to the Corcoran School of Art from which he received a degree in visual communication in 1976.
Whilst at art school he began photographing for Andy Warhol’s Interview magazine and served as its Washington DC correspondent.
In May 1976 he met and became friends with Elizabeth Taylor and soon after they traveled together to Iran. The photographs from that trip, which included the actress dressed in local tribal costumes, alongside portraits he took of her on the set of “A little Night Music” in Vienna became the subject of the cover story of Andy Warhol’s Interview magazine in October 1976.
In 1978 he accompanied Elizabeth Taylor to Hollywood as her personal photographer on the set of the film “Return Engagement”.
He settled in Los Angeles to pursue his photographic career. He subsequently moved to Los Angeles, and started his professional career as a photographer.
Photography
Editorial
In 1988 he was assigned by Vanity Fair to shoot for the magazine. Soon after he was placed under contract by that publication. His editorial work has appeared internationally on the covers of such magazines as Vanity Fair, Vogue, GQ, Town & Country, Glamour, In Style, Time, Architectural Digest and Entertainment Weekly.
Some of the celebrities he has photographed include Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Lopez, Cate Blanchett, Leonardo DiCaprio, Samuel L. Jackson, Bette Midler, Meryl Streep, Diane Keaton, Nicole Kidman, John Travolta, Oprah Winfrey and Ellen DeGeneres.
Advertising
Movie Posters
Created and shot numerous movie posters that include iconic films such as Pulp Fiction, Edward Scissorhands, The Addams Family (film), Get Shorty (film) and Jackie Brown (film).
Book covers
Goldie, A Lotus Grows in the Mud - Goldie Hawn
My Passion for Design - Barbra Streisand
Prime Time - Jane Fonda
Album Covers
Include several album covers for Barbra Streisand:
Release Me
Love is the Answer
Back to Broadway
Timeless: Live in Concert
Television
Firooz has appeared as a guest photographer on CW's America's Next Top Model.
Exhibitions
Museums
In February 2011 a collection of his photographs of Elizabeth Taylor in Iran was exhibited at the Los Angeles County museum of Art.
Galleries
His portraits and fine art photography have been shown in New York at the Staley Wise gallery and Leila Heller Gallery. Internationally at the Laleh June Gallery in Basel, Switzerland, and the Doha and Dubai Art Fairs.
Upcoming Exhibitions
A solo show of his work, “Firooz Zahedi - Photographs and collages” is scheduled for April 26 to June 7, 2014 at the Paul Kopeikin Gallery in Los Angeles. (kopeikingallery.com)
Personal life
Zahedi's son, Darian, is also a photographer as well as a musician. He has played with bands including The Rondelles and CRX. In 2012, Zahedi married Beth Rudin DeWoody, daughter of New York City real estate developer Lewis Rudin.