Annie Leibovitz' New SUMO Book Spans an Astounding 40-Year Career in 476 Pages

The most expensive and largest book project of the 20th century was Helmut Newton's SUMO, which sold out at $15,000 per copy, complete with its own book stand (the book is about as big as a medium-sized seven-year-old). Now, Annie Leibovitz' SUMO follows in its footsteps. At 476 pages, the Taschen-published art piece comes enveloped in your choice of four different dust jackets and is limited to 10,000 editioned copies, with the first 1000 coming in a leather-bound hardcover with a signed 20" x 20" archival pigment print and all four dust jackets.

Leibovitz' legacy famously began in 1970 with her stint at then-fledgling Rolling Stone Magazine, just barely a few years old. Going on to photograph and eventually tour with The Rolling Stones and countless other world-famous acts of the time (though let's face it, the British invasion is what really got the attention of her camera), Leibovitz built a career for herself that has earned her the place of the most sought-after contemporary commercial photographer.

Her intimate interactions with hundreds of Hollywood's most beloved and recognizable talents lend themselves to coverage in such a visual epic that this SUMO-sized book certainly is. Complete with a stand for the book designed by Marc Newson, a signed archival pigment print (Keith Haring (contact sheet), New York City, 1986), and all four dust jackets featuring Whoopi Goldberg, Berkeley, California, 1984; Keith Haring, New York City, 1986; David Byrne, Los Angeles, 1986; and Patti Smith, New Orleans, Louisiana, 1978, the leather-bound Art Edition, numbered 1-1000, is now available from Taschen for $5,000. The following 9,000 editions are available without the signed print and with a choice of one dust jacket for $2,500.