In Spain, the Marta Ortega Pérez Foundation Puts Annie Leibovitz in the Spotlight

Within the first of the buildings, there is a remarkable library of fashion and art books that rises up a tower—I could have stayed and immersed myself for hours, but I was burning with impatience to dive into the exhibition, and when the clock struck at the appointed hour, I raced in. Wearing a rust-hued three-piece corduroy suit designed by Daniel Rosebery for Schiaparelli, Leibovitz was somewhat giddy (if one could use such a frivolous word for such a pragmatic woman). And who could blame her?

Wonderland opens with a giant wall filled with hundreds of images of the Rolling Stones taken during the band’s seminal 1975 tour of America—their biggest and most ambitious at the time. Plucked from Leibovitz’s archive, they had been commissioned by Jann Wenner, the publisher-editor of Rolling Stone magazine. In the catalogue that accompanies the exhibit, the photographer’s sister, Susan Leibovitz Steinman, recalls the electric atmosphere of this era and lifts the lid on some stories behind the shots. For instance, in 1971, a determined young Annie wanted to photograph John Lennon, despite Rolling Stone having no budget to fly her in for the job. The aspiring photographer purchased a student ticket from San Francisco to New York, making sure she would not be replaced by Mr. Wenner. Keeping in step, the exhibit continues with a slew of rock star portraits, taken during Leibovitz’s days at the music magazine. From Bruce Springsteen to Patti Smith, Leibovitz has always had an uncanny ability to capture the inner selves of such mammoth figures.

I found myself particularly enamored by the series of Las Vegas showgirls. In one image, the troupe would be all dolled-up for the punters, and next to it, a dancer would be alone, stripped of her makeup and wig, wearing a t-shirt and glasses. Artifice, meets beautiful, unadorned reality. Wonderland also includes many of Leibovitz’s most revered and routinely referenced works—from Demi Moore’s 1991 pregnancy-revealing cover of Tina Brown’s Vanity Fair to the countless images that have graced the pages of this magazine, including a memorable 2001 spread of Ben Stiller chortling away surrounded by models clad in haute couture.