Fashion, eroticism, creativity… Mert & Marcus in a vibrant monograph

By Léa Zetlaoui.

Published on 8 September 2020. Updated on 18 May 2026.

Fashion’s most subversive duo

Let’s go back to 2020. Kim Kardashian exceeded expectations when she posted a picture of herself in a tree on Instagram. A few hours later, the image had racked up more than a million likes. Then, during Fashion Week, the Public Hotel in New York hosted a party that went down in history for its huge crowd of models and celebrities attending the event.

The photography duo responsible for all this overexcitement, verging on the irrational, have been generously serving the world of fashion for over 20 years now. They have captured the portraits of the hottest models, including Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, Gisele Bündchen, Lara Stone and Mariacarla Boscono. But also, those of the biggest stars in the entertainment industry, from Angelina Jolie to Rihanna and Jennifer Lopez. Their creative work has been featured in the most influential houses, like Gucci and Versace, and on the glossy magazine covers of Numéro, Vogue, W and Interview. 

A vibrant universe gathered in a huge monograph

Since their debut in 1998, Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott have reached the pinnacle of fashion photography. Their distinctive and colourful pictures of sexualised, yet powerful women, as well as their fashion campaigns and shoots in which the avant-garde openly flirts with commercials, took the industry by storm. Heavily inspired by Guy Bourdin, the pioneer of the ‘porno chic’ aesthetic, the two photographers elevated the concept to the status of art along with Mario Testino.

For the first time, the most subversive fashion duo saw their work published by Taschen, with an insightful introduction by British curator and writer Charlotte Cotton. A large monograph of some 300 images drawn from their smoldering archives that showcases their electric and vibrant universe.

Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott (2018) with an introduction by Charlotte Cotton, published by Taschen.