Rebecca Blake, an acclaimed music video/commercial director and fashion photographer perhaps best known for her collaborations with music artist Prince, died of heart failure due to a rare heart disease on Saturday, September 17, at Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, NJ.
Her death was confirmed by her husband and creative partner, Dicran (Deke) Donelian, of Atlantic Highlands, NJ. Born in Antwerp, Belgium, Blake came to the United States at a young age, and her European roots are evident in her work and aesthetics.
She attended the prestigious High School for Music and Art as a piano major, before attending New York University where she earned her Bachelor’s Degree studying music and art history
After graduating college, Blake quickly established a career as a successful commercial photographer, working with some of the world’s most prestigious fashion and beauty brands: Estee Lauder, Revlon, Elizabeth Arden, Yves St. Laurent and Clairol, among others. In 1977, she was hired by director Irvin Kershner to work closely with both himself and actress Faye Dunaway as special photographic consultant on the feature film The Eyes of Laura Mars, which starred Dunaway as a New York fashion photographer who has premonitions of murders. At the same time, Blake was commissioned by Columbia Pictures to create a series of erotic photographs which were featured in the film, alongside work by German fashion photographer Helmut Newton.
Blake quickly moved into directing commercials for clients such as L’Oréal, Pantene, Revlon, Shiseido, Victoria’s Secret, Guess, Maybelline, Citroen, and Volkswagen. Blake most recently helmed work via the production company Luxe.World which she and Donelian maintained.
Over the course of her career, Blake worked with an extensive list of the top models, musicians and actors of our time: Angelina Jolie, Claudia Schiffer, Kate Moss, Cindy Crawford, Hallie Berry, Jessica Lange, Monica Bellucci, John Travolta, Christie Brinkley, U2, Duran Duran, Debbie Harry, Sheena Easton, Sheila E., Michael Bolton, KISS, George Benson, Pattie La Belle, Stephanie Seymour, Lauren Hutton, Paulina Porizkova, Brooke Shields, Grace Jones, Vanessa Williams, John Malkovich, Kevin Kline, Darryl Hall and Luis Miguel, among others.
Blake was a trailblazer in many ways, being one of the handful of women who were able to break into the traditional “boy’s club” of advertising and music video production at a time when females were relegated to lesser roles.
Blake’s photography is in the permanent collections of the International Center of Photography, The Brooklyn Museum, and The Mellon Collection of Surreal Art. Her work has been exhibited at The Rizzoli Gallery, Nikon House, The Hastings Gallery, The Witkin Gallery and The Light Gallery, among others.
In addition to her husband, Blake is survived by her brother, Jack Goodchild of Sherman Oaks, CA; his wife, Carrie, and their son Adam and daughter Sarah. Blake is also survived by her cousin, Benny Barmapov, of Staten Island, NY, and Sunny Isles Beach, FL.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Blake’s memory to the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City. Blake was the daughter of concentration camp survivors who met at Buchenwald. Donations in Blake’s name may be made here to the Museum of Jewish Heritage–A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in NYC
Lauded Director/Photographer Rebecca Blake Passes Away From A Rare Heart Disease
RED BANK, NJ–Rebecca Blake, the acclaimed music video/commercial director and fashion photographer perhaps best known for her collaborations with music artist Prince, died of heart failure due to a rare heart disease on Saturday, September 17, at Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, NJ.
Her death was confirmed by her husband and creative partner, Dicran (Deke) Donelian, of Atlantic Highlands, NJ. Born in Antwerp, Belgium, Blake came to the United States at a young age, and her European roots are evident in her work and aesthetics.
She attended the prestigious High School for Music and Art as a piano major, before attending New York University where she earned her Bachelor’s Degree studying music and art history
After graduating college, Blake quickly established a career as a successful commercial photographer, working with some of the world’s most prestigious fashion and beauty brands: Estee Lauder, Revlon, Elizabeth Arden, Yves St. Laurent and Clairol, among others. In 1977, she was hired by director Irvin Kershner to work closely with both himself and actress Faye Dunaway as special photographic consultant on the feature film The Eyes of Laura Mars, which starred Dunaway as a New York fashion photographer who has premonitions of murders. At the same time, Blake was commissioned by Columbia Pictures to create a series of erotic photographs which were featured in the film, alongside work by German fashion photographer Helmut Newton.
Blake quickly moved into directing commercials for clients such as L’Oréal, Pantene, Revlon, Shiseido, Victoria’s Secret, Guess, Maybelline, Citroen, and Volkswagen. Blake most recently helmed work via the production company Luxe.World which she and Donelian maintained.
Over the course of her career, Blake worked with an extensive list of the top models, musicians and actors of our time: Angelina Jolie, Claudia Schiffer, Kate Moss, Cindy Crawford, Hallie Berry, Jessica Lange, Monica Bellucci, John Travolta, Christie Brinkley, U2, Duran Duran, Debbie Harry, Sheena Easton, Sheila E., Michael Bolton, KISS, George Benson, Pattie La Belle, Stephanie Seymour, Lauren Hutton, Paulina Porizkova, Brooke Shields, Grace Jones, Vanessa Williams, John Malkovich, Kevin Kline, Darryl Hall and Luis Miguel, among others.
Blake was a trailblazer in many ways, being one of the handful of women who were able to break into the traditional “boy’s club” of advertising and music video production at a time when females were relegated to lesser roles.
Blake’s photography is in the permanent collections of the International Center of Photography, The Brooklyn Museum, and The Mellon Collection of Surreal Art. Her work has been exhibited at The Rizzoli Gallery, Nikon House, The Hastings Gallery, The Witkin Gallery and The Light Gallery, among others.
In addition to her husband, Blake is survived by her brother, Jack Goodchild of Sherman Oaks, CA; his wife, Carrie, and their son Adam and daughter Sarah. Blake is also survived by her cousin, Benny Barmapov, of Staten Island, NY, and Sunny Isles Beach, FL.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Blake’s memory to the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York City. Blake was the daughter of concentration camp survivors who met at Buchenwald. Donations in Blake’s name may be made here to the Museum of Jewish Heritage–A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in NYC
