Crowns

A photographic panorama of the creativity and variety of Black women's hairstyles

In Crowns: My Hair, My Soul, My Freedom American photographer Sandro Miller (born 1958) celebrates the social endurance, cultural heritage and self-expression of Black women through their hairstyles. In this series of portraits, each subject is posed in front of either a strikingly black or vibrant geometric background that serves to highlight the models' skin tones and accentuates their ultra-stylized hair, whether a halo of bright gold curls or crimson locks swept into an elegant bun. Each image is based on the relevant model's "hair story" and pays homage to her personal fashion sense, documenting the many unspoken ways in which Black women assert their autonomy through their physical appearance. In this project, Miller seeks to recognize and honor Black women's creativity and beauty while celebrating their social endurance and cultural memory at the same time.

Sandro Miller first became interested in photography at the age of 16, when he was exposed to the work of Irving Penn. Miller's career now spans over thirty years, and he has photographed for clients such as American Express, Dove, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Nike, and Nikon, with whom he has a longstanding working relationship. His editorial work has been featured in The New Yorker, GQ, Esquire, Time, Forbes, Wired, New York Magazine, and ESPN Magazine, among others. He won a Saatchi & Saatchi Best New Director Award for his short film Butterflies featuring John Malkovich, a 2014 Lucie Award for International Photographer of the Year, and has been voted one of the top 200 advertising photographers in the world for the past five years. In addition to photography, Miller devotes himself to charitable organizations such as the American Heart Association, Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Milwaukee, Arts for Life, Dance for Life, and AIDS Chicago. He lives and works in Chicago.

• Publisher: ‎Skira (March 22, 2022)
• Language: ‎English
• Hardcover: ‎180 pages
• ISBN-10: ‎8857245586
• ISBN-13: ‎9788857245584
• Item Weight: ‎6.26 pounds
• Dimensions: ‎12.01 x 13.82 inches