Richard Avedon (1923-2004) has photographed some of the most significant and influential people of the 20th and early 21st centuries. These portraits have spanned the fields of culture, politics and literature. Avedon had an amazing eye for significant details to bring out the character of his subjects. The technical execution of his photographs are also quite something. Here are some of his works.

Bernard Buffet, painter, and wife Annabel Buffet, writer, Paris, January 27 1959

Samuel Beckett, writer, Paris, April 13, 1975