Oliviero Toscani, Provocative Photographer Behind Benetton's Iconic Campaigns, Dies at 82
Oliviero Toscani, an Italian photographer whose provocative advertising campaigns for Benetton made headlines and even spiritual icons, has passed away at the age of 82. The news was announced on January 13, 2025, by his family, who said he had been seriously ill. Toscani had been admitted to the hospital in Cecina, Tuscany, with amyloidosis, a rare and incurable disease. He reportedly lost consciousness before his death after a rapid decline in his health over the last year.
Toscani, born February 28, 1942, followed footsteps to become a photographer and learned in Zurich. He has worked for a myriad of fashion magazines. He began his years collaborating with luminaries in the world of fashion and, during this period, launched many careers, like that of models Monica Bellucci. However, he is more famous for the job he's done as the creative director of the Italian clothing company Benetton.
Toscani started his relationship with Benetton in the 1980s. This was a tool through which he expressed provocative photography. His art direction made the advertisements of Benetton topics of international social issues debates using powerful images. His campaigns mainly used shocking and provocative pictures, like one of a dying AIDS patient and, most notably, graphic photographs of a soldier's bloodied uniform from the Bosnian War. The portraits were erected on billboards throughout the world, literally and physically confronted the public with rough subjects so that they became aware of their surroundings.
One of the most provocative and well-known campaigns done by Toscani is the images of American murderers in death row. It brought forth maximum outrage within the United States. It was a campaign executed with the cooperation of an American journalist named Ken Shulman and conceptualized as an angry response to the institution of capital punishment. Toscani said that he wanted to use the medium of advertising to speak about the important issues in society rather than selling goods. He was a strong believer in the truth that conventional advertising has used false promises of beauty and success as the backbone of most advertisements, which he tried to defy through Benetton's ads.
Toscani's work with Benetton stirred up a flap, but he also did much to make the brand's identity, now known as "United Colors of Benetton," a household name. Shock value has been associated with the image generation of Toscani. Within this fashion-hoarding planet, shock-value advertisement was interesting because it relied on all those advertisements. In 2000, Toscani left Benetton again after a controversy of prison inmates on the death row in the U.S. Despite this, his influence is already felt by both the fashion and advertising worlds.
In 2017, Toscani came back to Benetton for a new push to regain former lost glory; the brand was weakened some years ago and fast fashion retailers have become some of its competitors. For this, Toscani collaborated once more with Luciano Benetton one of the founders of the brand in an effort to revive through his vision new life in it. Once again, however, the photographer was let off by Benetton in 2020 for his comments regarding the collapse of the Morandi Bridge in Genoa in 2018, which claimed 43 lives. Such remarks made by Toscani, downplaying the tragedy, created such an outcry that he was out of business with the company.
Toscani’s legacy lives on, not just in the world of fashion, but in the broader cultural impact of his work. His photographs pushed boundaries and challenged societal norms, using advertising as a vehicle for raising awareness about critical social issues. His work was showcased in 2024 at Zurich's Museum für Gestaltung, in an exhibition entitled "Photography and Provocation," a fitting tribute to a career that was anything but conventional.
Though his career was surrounded by controversy, Toscani's career redefined the very nature of advertising within modern society. As the stark realities were painted by Toscani, the common marketing act changed into one of the strongest social commentaries, leaving behind a legacy to inspire and provoke for years to come.
