Madonna

“I got a call from my friend Mary Lambert asking if I would like to be involved in a new music video she was about to direct. Mary needed a still portrait studio shoot, some production stills, as well as some 2nd camera film work.

The still photo portrait session was pulled together quickly and took place on Thursday February 9, 1984, over an afternoon in a borrowed photo studio on Sunset Blvd in Hollywood.

Our goal was to create several different ‘looks’ in a short amount of time, so I pre-lit the three setups, the goal being to quickly build a mock model’s portfolio that use as props in the ‘Borderline’ video.

On set, Madonna was a fashion model, diva, ingenue, vamp, cut-up and tease all rolled into one. She was captivating, coy, serious, sensual, funny, and sometimes bored with me and the process. What more could you want from your subject?

I filed the photographs away in my archive, and life moved on. Over the years I moved studios, homes, as well as onto other clients, assignments, and creative projects. Thirty-eight years later during a deep dive into my past work during the Covid-19 lockdown, I found the pictures again. It struck me that NOW is the time for this collection to finally be seen.”

-Andrew Caulfield