Tilda Swinton Films Ad with Ryan McGinley

Photographer Ryan McGinley switched from his stereotypical subject of young waifs in progressively less clothing to shoot a short commercial with actress Tilda Swinton for Pringle of Scotland. The photographer had long been a fan of Swinton, saying he’d “wanted to work with her since I was in art school.” McGinley added that the Oscar-winning actress’s earlier work with Derek Jarman, a British film director, “kind of changed my life.” The product of his life-altering collaboration with Swinton is a seven-minute movie, featuring the actress in a Pringle ensemble wandering through serene foliage. It’s a typical backdrop for the photographer, who tends to set his subjects in pastoral scenes and who also somehow maintains his high-art credibility while shamelessly promoting clothing, yet again. Last year, McGinley photographed a series for Levi’s jeans that earned him praise from The New Yorker photography critic Vince Aletti.