Antonio Lopez: Fashion, Art, Sex, and Disco

The first complete monograph on Antonio Lopez, the influential Warholian fashion illustrator of the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s.

Best known for dazzling illustrations in Women’s Wear Daily, Vogue, the New York Times, Interview, and for high fashion labels, Antonio Lopez (1943–1987) was a force majeur in the fashion world for three decades.

In the ‘60s, Lopez’s vibrant illustrations helped usher youth culture into the pages of magazines, setting a new, free-flowing, sexually liberated standard for fashion imagery. Living in Paris during the 70s with his creative partner Juan Ramos, Lopez launched the modeling careers of Jerry Hall, Grace Jones, and Jessica Lange among others worked with design royalty like Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent and cultivated a soigné nightlife persona in the blistering-hot underground clubs of Paris. Returning to New York City in 1976, Antonio documented the sexy influence of athletic wear, puffy, down coats, and break-dancing style, inspiring such designers as Norma Kamali and Anna Sui. 

Widely recognized during this period as the world’s most influential fashion illustrator, Antonio’s work took on a deeper, more sculptural dimension in the 80s, richly detailed, with a vivid palette, and heroic proportions and poses. So deft and varied in his expression, Antonio Lopez simultaneously executed campaigns for labels as diverse as Norma Kamali, YSL, Valentino, Missoni, and Versace - an unprecedented feat in a highly competitive industry.

The prolific Lopez produced an incredible number of drawings, illustrations, paintings, photographs, and fantastic mixed-media journals, and this book showcases his most iconic works, as well as never-before-seen Instamatic photos, behind-the-scenes Polaroids, letters, and ephemera which, together, provide an understanding of the career trajectory of an extraordinarily talented artist, and convey Antonio Lopez’s enduring influence on fashion today.

"I’m from the generation that came to New York to meet their idols. In my case, it was Andy Warhol and Antonio Lopez." - Anna Sui