Erotic and emancipated: the women of Bettina Rheims

Bettina Rheims was born into a creative and powerful family. Her father was a renowned French writer and arts historian, while her German mother was related to the Rothschild clan. In her 20s, she began her career by taking pictures of Paris prostitutes, and she has continued to empower women through photography to this day. "I take pictures of women, for women," Rheims said about her method.

In 1994 Rheims did a shoot with Madonna, and the singer ended up using a shot for the cover of her album, "Bedtime Stories." The record flopped, but Madonna's sensual poses became some of the most recognized images of Rheims' career. "I still find myself having to justify being a woman taking pictures of naked women. It never occurred to me that there was something bizarre about it," said Rheims.

Rheims' portrait of Monica Belluci looks like an advertisement, with the Italian actress exerting a pull on the spectator with her gaze. Rheims has explained that it's not all about nudity in her work, but rather about feeling naked: "I always like it when you can tell the life of a person by their face and their eyes. For me it’s not about the nudity, it’s about what’s underneath the skin."

Rheims' style highlights both the power and the fragility of beauty. Her lighting brings out imperfections, while also showing her subjects in a "larger-than-life" manner. Rheims says she pays great attention to skin. "One of the first questions I ask myself is 'What kind of skin am I going to represent? Is it going to be warm, sun-lit, bluish? Is it going to keep all its flaws?'"

Rheims has worked with countless famous models, actors and even politicians throughout her career. She's able to get through to the subjects of her portraits because she herself was a model at the start of her career in the 1970s. Many of her images show women in some kind of transitioning motion, like her 2002 portrait of British actress Kristin Scott Thomas.

When Dutch director Paul Verhoeven released his erotic drama "Showgirls" in 1995, it was derided by audiences and critics alike as one of the worst movies of all time. But with her photograph of protagonists Elizabeth Berkley and Gina Gershon kissing, Rheims stepped in and saved the day, turning the movie's seedy narrative on its head. It became one of her most famous images.

Bettina Rheims has forged many friendships with powerful women in the public eye, resulting in intimate portraits, touching moments and complex depictions of femininity. "Photography has this amazing thing called 'the moment.' A fraction of a second later is too late, and a fraction of a second sooner is too early," Rheims has said of her art.