This double portrait of dancer and ballet impresario Raymundo de Larrain and viscountess and socialite Jacqueline de Ribes was taken in Richard Avedon’s New York studio when they were in town for the Embassy Ball. Born in Chile, Larrain was ambitious professionally and socially, and his career and life were both punctuated with brilliant successes and the occasional scandal. Jacqueline de Ribes saw in Larrain a great talent and underwrote his ballet company until his lavish expenses became untenable. In Avedon’s photograph, the couple possesses a palpable old-world elegance and poise, and their closed eyes suggest a collective vision.
In 1961, shortly after this photograph was taken, Larrain arranged for the Kirov Ballet to perform for two weeks in Paris, inviting Avedon – a world-class fan of ballet – to one of the performances. After the Paris engagement, Kirov star dancer Rudolf Nureyev defected, refusing to return to Moscow. Initially, he was sequestered in Larrain’s apartment, and later performed with his company. It was Larrain who invited Avedon to photograph the ballet star, resulting in one of the most significant sessions in Avedon’s career up to that time.
A print of the image offered here was exhibited in the recent retrospective, Avedon 100.