ALL IN THE FAMILY: Chalk it up to nepotism, cost cutting or just good genes, but aspiring photographer Theo Wenner, son of Jann, is getting a lot of work from Rolling Stone these days. In recent months, the 23-year-old has photographed Ke$ha, MGMT and Corinne Bailey Rae for the biweekly.
Wenner is a familiar face at the magazine: he interned in the photo department over the summer of 2006, and got his big break two years later when he was commissioned to shoot Robert Pattinson for the 2008 Hot List issue. (Notably, he’s gotten quite a bit of mileage out of the series — last summer, Us Weekly, another Wenner Media property, devoted several pages to “never-before-seen” photos from the shoot, and some of his Pattinson pics have appeared, presumably through syndication agreements, in issues of Dossier magazine and Swedish Elle.) Asked about Wenner’s contributions, Rolling Stone’s creative director, Jodi Peckman, told WWD: “Theo gives a fresh, new perspective to the pages of the magazine. He displays confidence, style and a great knowledge and appreciation of photography in all its forms.”
Peckman has good reason to effuse about her boss’ son, but other mags are hiring him, too. Vanity Fair published Wenner’s portrait of “American Idiot” actor John Gallagher Jr. in this month’s front of book, and the French biannual Purple featured his work in a multiphotographer fashion spread in spring 2009. (The story’s other contributors? Ellen von Unwerth, Magnus Unnar, Mark Borthwick and Mario Sorrenti’s sister, Vanina.)
And Wenner’s also clocked time in front of the camera. He posed for Hogan’s fall 2009 ad campaign, alongside comely New York youths including Annabelle Dexter-Jones and Nate Lowman. Clearly, being a Wenner didn’t hurt there, either. Neither the elder Wenner nor his son were available for comment.
— Nick Axelrod