PIRELLIS YOU CAN’T BUY

You can buy their tires, just not their calendars.

In my youth, it was common to walk into a gas station to pay after you filled up, and behind the register was a calendar of a scantily attired pinup. Especially prevalent during WW ll,  and started to boost morale, it always boosted mine when I went in to settle up with the guy taking my cash. I liked those calendars, a lot. No one walks in to pay anymore, and accept for a bathroom or a snack, it’s not necessary, and the pin-up calendars, I suppose, have gone the way of full service attendants.

At a friends garage mahal recently, I nearly walked past a calendar book that I had never seen before, published by the Italian tire manufacturer, Pirelli.  Thick, glossy, the coffee table book displayed covers from 50 years of the calendar’s publications.

This book contained photographs of calendars from 1964 to 2007, the unpublished 1963 calendar, and behind-the-scenes shots taken over those many years. The stunning imagery is accompanied by a comprehensive text tracing the evolution of the calendar and the history of photography in the past forty years.

The Pirelli calendar’s extraordinary history began in 1963 when the tire company created a calendar featuring pin-up models as a promotional gift for its top customers. Since that time, Pirelli has collaborated with some of the world’s best known photographers like Richard Avedon, Mario Testino, and Annie Leibovitz to photograph beautiful women such as Iman and Naomi Campbell. The Pirelli calendar’s exclusivity means everyone wants one but they are only available to corporate customers and VIPs, so you are in rare air if Pirelli has ever sent you one directly.

You can find past and current editions for sale from third-party sellers on auction and resale sites like eBay or AbeBooks. Alternatively, you may buy official coffee-table-style books from Amazon that reproduce past calendar images, and this is what this book is all about.

Finally, make no mistake about other calendars that you may feel are of the same ilk; Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues, for example. Beautiful women both, but the Pirelli calendar, initially an innovative marketing idea, evolved into an institution, using art and exclusivity to maintain its unique cultural relevance.

Aspect	Pirelli Calendar	Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue
	A high-end, innovative marketing tool and art project for the Italian tire company, intended to evoke broad values of innovation and excellence.	Originally created as “filler material” to boost sales during the quiet winter months in the sports calendar.
Distribution	Ultra-exclusive; produced in limited quantities and given as gifts to a select few clients, partners, and celebrities.	A mass-market publication with widespread availability and a significant readership (including a large female audience who use it as a shopping guide).

Content and Focus

	Pirelli Calendar	Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue
	Known for its artistic, avant-garde, and sometimes provocative photography by world-renowned photographers like Richard Avedon, Helmut Newton, and Annie Leibovitz.	Traditionally focused on glamorous models in swimwear photographed in exotic locations, with a focus on commercial beauty standards, though it has recently evolved towards greater inclusion.
Subjects	Features a mix of top fashion models, actresses, musicians, and sports icons, with recent editions focusing on accomplished women of all ages, celebrating their achievements over just physical beauty.	Primarily features models who became “supermodels” through their appearances, but has expanded to include women from sports, news, and entertainment, representing a variety of body types and backgrounds.
Evolution	The calendar has consistently evolved to reflect changing social and creative trends, often pushing boundaries and challenging societal norms.	The issue has also evolved, moving towards more inclusivity and using its platform as a vehicle for change and female empowerment, while still retaining its core swimsuit theme.