From being an annual collection of overtly-sexual photographs of hot women, the Pirelli Calendar is shaping up to be a yearly editorial of creative thought. Take for example how the latest one features an all-black cast, recerating scenes from Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland.

Shot by Tim Walker and styled by British Vogue‘s new editor-in-chief Edward Enninful, the photos are quite stunning and spark interest. Drag queen RuPaul Charles plays the Queen of Hearts, Whoopi Goldberg is the Royal Duchess, while Diddy and Naomi Campbell (a Pirelli alumni) are the Royal Beheaders. Many more personalities feature such as Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o and model Adwoa Aboah, who featured on the cover of Vogue a few months back. Of note also is Thando Hopa, an albino lawyer who specializes in sexual abuse cases in South Africa. She shared her thoughts on the empowering message this 2018 calendar brings, “When I was young, I didn’t have a single role model who looked like me, who could have been a source of inspiration or motivation. I wanted to expand other people’s imaginations by not letting them be restricted to specific stories or narratives…Your value comes from far more than the narrative that someone else gives you.”

This is the first time the calendar has ever put together an all-black ensemble for its shoot. It’s still timely and a welcome gesture, however, given the issue of the lack of diversity and representation. It also follows through with the evolution of the calendar as a touchpoint for societal thought. Previous editions of the calendar featured unretouched photos of actresses and women of feminist influence. Edward shared how the shoot was directly influenced by today’s socio-political conditions. “Given the state of the world we live in, sometimes I think we all feel like we’ve fallen down the rabbit hole,” he said. On the other hand, Tim comments on the work succintly, “This is not about trends, this is about the zeitgeist of today.”

Photos courtesy of Tim Walker for Pirelli Calendar and Nylon

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