Howell Thomas Conant, Sr. (March 13, 1916 – March 11, 1999) was an American fashion photographer noted for his portraits of the American actress and later

Princess Consort of Monaco Princess is a title used by a female member of a regnant monarch's family or by a female Monarch, ruler of a principality. The male equivalent is a prince (from Latin ''princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been u ...

Grace Kelly Grace Patricia Kelly (November 12, 1929 – September 14, 1982), also known as Grace of Monaco, was an American actress and Princess of Monaco as the wife of Prince Rainier III from their marriage on April 18, 1956, until her death in 1982. ...

Life

Conant's father was a professional photographer who owned a studio in

Marinette, Wisconsin Marinette is a city in and the county seat of Marinette County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located on the south bank of the Menominee River, at its mouth at Green Bay (Lake Michigan), Green Bay, part of Lake Michigan; to the north is Stephe ...

. Conant studied photography at the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...

and at the

Art Center College of Design The ArtCenter College of Design is a private art college in Pasadena, California. It was incorporated in 1930 as a degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for students of both the visual arts and design. ...

in Pasadena. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Conant was stationed at

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Reci ...

and was part of the Naval photographic team operating under Admiral

Chester W. Nimitz Chester William Nimitz (; 24 February 1885 – 20 February 1966) was a fleet admiral in the United States Navy. He played a major role in the naval history of World War II as Commander in Chief, US Pacific Fleet, and Commander in Chief, ...

. Conant later took pictures for ''

Life Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...

'', '' Look'' and ''

Paris Match ''Paris Match'' () is a French-language weekly gossip magazine. It covers major national and international news along with celebrity lifestyle features. ''Paris Match'' has been considered "one of the world's best outlets for photojournalism". ...

'' among other publications, and photographed celebrities from

Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was an English and American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 19 ...

and

Audrey Hepburn Audrey Kathleen Hepburn ( Ruston; 4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993) was a British actress. Recognised as a film and fashion icon, she was ranked by the American Film Institute as the third-greatest female screen legend from the Classical Holly ...

to American presidents

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...

and

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

. Conant died at his home in Carefree, Arizona in 1999. He was survived by his wife, Dorothy; with whom he had four children.

Grace Kelly

In 1955, Conant received a commission from ''

Photoplay ''Photoplay'' was one of the first American film fan magazines, its title another word for screenplay. It was founded in Chicago in 1911. Under early editors Julian Johnson and James R. Quirk, in style and reach it became a pacesetter for fan m ...

'' magazine to conduct a cover shoot with

, who was a prominent film actress at the time. After the Photoplay shoot, Grace Kelly vacationed in Jamaica alongside her sister and extended an invitation to Conant. He photographed her in a naturalistic setting without makeup, which was a departure from the traditional portrayal of actresses. The resulting photographs were published in the June 24 issue of ''

Collier's } ''Collier's'' was an American general interest magazine founded in 1888 by Peter F. Collier, Peter Fenelon Collier. It was launched as ''Collier's Once a Week'', then renamed in 1895 as ''Collier's Weekly: An Illustrated Journal'', shortened i ...

'' magazine, with a celebrated photo of Kelly rising from the water with wet hair making the cover. Conant wrote that he thought that Grace Kelly's sole flaw in her appearance was her jaw, which he considered too square. He would use a dog or a baby to disguise it when photographing her below her jaw. Conant later said that "You trusted Grace's beauty...You knew it wasn't built from clothes and makeup...this was Grace: natural, unpretentious". Grace Kelly sailed on the ''

SS Constitution SS ''Constitution'' was an ocean liner owned by American Export Lines, sister ship of . Both were constructed in the United States and made their maiden voyages in 1951. History Commissioned in 1951, she started her long career sailing on ...

'' from New York to Monaco for her marriage to Prince Rainier in 1956. Many photographers were on board the ship, but only Conant had access to Grace Kelly. Following her marriage Conant was the unofficial photographer to the

House of Grimaldi The House of Grimaldi is the Dynasty, reigning house of the Monaco, Principality of Monaco. The house was founded in 1160 by Grimaldo Canella in Genoa and became the ruling house of Monaco when François Grimaldi, Francesco Grimaldi captured Mo ...

, and extensively photographed Grace Kelly, her husband and their three children. In 1992 Conant published ''Grace'', a book of photographs that he took during Kelly's 26-year reign as Princess of Monaco. In September 1982, Conant was preparing for a trip to Monaco to capture the family's official Christmas portrait. However, upon learning of Princess Grace's tragic death in a car accident, he departed for Monaco without his photographic equipment. Despite this unexpected turn of events, Conant maintained his friendship with Prince Rainier until the prince's passing.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conant, Howell 1916 births 1999 deaths People from Marinette, Wisconsin ArtCenter College of Design alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni 20th-century American photographers American fashion photographers 20th-century American writers United States Navy personnel of World War II People from Carefree, Arizona People from Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin 20th-century American non-fiction writers