LIFE

Whether playing a princess or a bookstore clerk, Audrey Hepburn always epitomized elegance and grace. ⁣⁣In her films, she insisted on playing central characters at a time when the industry often cast women as the love interests of male leads. These photographs were taken for the cover of @LIFE magazine in 1955. Photographer Philippe Halsman captured portraits of the star while she was in Rome, staying at an Italian farm during the filming of “War and Peace” (1956). The magazine described the pink farmhouse as “an idyl for Audrey.” Hepburn, with her roles like Holly Golightly in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (1961), became a trendsetting icon for a new generation of American women. Later in life, she dedicated herself to humanitarian work with children around the globe. For her efforts, she received a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1992. ⁣⁣ 🎂 Happy birthday, Audrey Hepburn! She was born #OnThisDay in 1929.⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ ⁣ (Image Credits) 1. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution. © Philippe Halsman Archive 2. LIFE magazine’s July 18, 1955 cover. 3. Courtesy of the Philippe Halsman Archive (@philippe_halsman_official ) © Philippe Halsman Archive

A show about LIFE's staff photographer Margaret Bourke-White is now open through April 26 at Monroe Gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico! Explore her influential work through special curations from our archive. (📷Margaret Bourke-White | LIFE Picture Collection) #lifemagazine #santafe #photoexhibit #margaretbourkewhite

Miss the Olympics? Visit our new exhibition of LIFE Winter Games photographs at the Centro Internazionale di Fotografia – Scavi Scaligeri in Verona, Italy! Open now through June 2, 2026, the show features both iconic and rare photographs from the LIFE photo archive. Fifteen-year-old Andrea Mead Lawrence trains for the 1948 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz, Switzerland. (📷 George Silk | LIFE Picture Collection, 1947) #winterolympics #slalom #veronaitaly #photoexhibit #lifemagazine

In New York? Come visit our show at Staley-Wise Gallery in Soho! Free and open to the public, "Looking at LIFE" features photographs from Margaret Bourke-White, Harry Benson, Alfred Eisenstaedt, Andreas Feininger, Martha Holmes, and many more. Open Tuesday-Saturday from 11am to 5pm, Staley-Wise is at 100 Crosby Street (Suite 305). The LIFE show runs through February 7. 📷 Alfred Eisenstaedt/LIFE Picture Collection 📷 Martha Holmes/LIFE Picture Collection 📷 Martha Holmes/LIFE Picture Collection 📷 Alfred Eisenstaedt/LIFE Picture Collection 📷 Margaret Bourke-White/LIFE Picture Collection 📷 Michael Rougier/LIFE Picture Collection 📷 Andreas Feininger/LIFE Picture Collection 📷 Lisa Larsen/LIFE Picture Collection ________ @staleywisegallery #LIFEMagazine #galleryshow #NYCartevents #margaretbourkewhite #alfredeisenstaedt #andreasfeininger #marthaholmes #harrybenson #photographylovers #documentaryphotography #photojournalism

Robert Redford passed away today at the age of 89. In LIFE's February 6, 1970 profile of the actor, Richard Schickel wrote, "Just standing there in his socks, just existing, [Redford] goads and tempts and bugs and dares you into ventures and adventures you would not normally dream of undertaking..." (📷 John Dominis, 1969/LIFE Picture Collection) #robertredford #johndominis #lifemagazine

Tourists visit Old Faithful at Yellowstone National Park, 1946. In an August 19, 1946 profile of the park, LIFE's editors marveled that visitors came to Yellowstone by "plane, car, rail, bus and motorcycle from every state in the Union. They camp out or sleep in trailer parks ($1), tourist huts ($1.25 up), lodges ($5 up with food) or hotels ($3.50 up). The postcards they buy would make a pile higher than the Empire State Building..." (📷 Alfred Eisenstaedt, 1946/LIFE Picture Collection) #lifemagazine #alfredeisenstaedt #yellowstone #nationalparks #geysers #oldfaithful

Actress Elsa Martinelli zips around Paris on a Honda minibike, November 1964. In a 1957 profile of the Italian star, LIFE noted that she loved to "collect" sweaters "from all over" and wear them with "yards of necklaces." (📷 Carlo Bavagnoli, 1964/LIFE Picture Collection) #lifemagazine #elsamartinelli #fallfashion #paris #hondaminibike

University of Southern California punter Des Koch practices before a game, September 1953. Koch later won the bronze medal in discus at the 1956 Olympics. (📷 Ed Clark, 1953/LIFE Picture Collection) #lifemagazine #edclark #uscfootball

Jazz legend Dizzy Gillespie signs an autograph for a young fan, 1948. (📷 Allan Grant, 1948/LIFE Picture Collection) #lifemagazine #dizzygillespie #1940sfashion #allangrant #jazz

From the September 5, 1949 issue of LIFE: "While most American railroads are currently suffering a modest drop in business, one railroad company is enjoying the best year in its history. It is the Lionel Corporation, which since 1900 has been turning out miniature trains and equipment with such increasing fidelity to type that it now has to tell customers how to create tiny thunderstorms to run their trains through..." According to the photo's original caption, a worker at Lionel is dropping "a pill that makes real smoke" into a miniature train as an "F3 diesel whizzes past." (📷 Al Fenn, 1949/LIFE Picture Collection) #lifemagazine #alfenn #toytrains #lionelcorporation #vintagetoys #tinythunderstorms

Fashion designer Giorgio Armani has passed away today at the age of 91. We remember the icon with photos from our 1990s archive. Here he is with friends Mira Sorvino, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Nadja Auermann. (📷 DMI/LIFE Picture Collection) #giorgioarmani #fashion #1990s @mirasorvino @nadjaauermann @gwynethpaltrow

A Louisiana State University student poses in front of a "live" LIFE cover on campus, May 1946. (📷 Thomas McAvoy/LIFE Picture Collection) #lifemagazine #1940sfashion #vintageswimsuit #lsu