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Blondie

Debbie Harry: The Making of an Icon

Before social media, before online media, and long before artists could communicate directly with millions of followers, public identity was built through photographs.

Magazine covers, record sleeves, posters, newspapers, publicity portraits, and music magazines shaped how audiences understood musicians. For most people, photography was not simply a record of an artist—it was the artist.

Few figures illustrate this better than Debbie Harry.

Emerging from New York's downtown scene in the mid-1970s, Harry became one of the most recognizable faces of her generation. Yet her transformation from local musician to international icon was not driven solely by music. It was built through a remarkable body of imagery created by photographers who understood that they were documenting something unique.

Chris Stein, Bob Gruen, Roberta Bayley, Ebet Roberts, Mick Rock, Sheila Rock, Bobby Grossman, Godlis, Allan Tannenbaum and others did far more than photograph Debbie Harry. Together, they helped shape one of the defining visual identities of twentieth-century popular culture.

From CBGB and the Bowery to magazine covers, world tours, studio portraits and collaborations with figures such as Andy Warhol, David Bowie and Iggy Pop, these photographs reveal how an image became an icon.

This collection explores not only Debbie Harry's career, but the essential role photography played in creating the Debbie Harry the world came to know.

162 works
Debbie Harry with Chris Stein, New York City, 1977, photographed by Chris Stein.
Debbie Harry with Chris Stein, New York City, 1977TMPG·7078
Chris Stein From $1,000
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Chris Stein and Debbie Harry, 1981. Photograph by Ebet Roberts.
Chris Stein and Debbie Harry, 1981TMPG·4790
Ebet Roberts From $1,000
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Chris Stein and Debbie Harry, New York City, 1982. Photograph by Ebet Roberts.
Chris Stein and Debbie Harry, New York City, 1982TMPG·4694
Ebet Roberts From $1,000
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The Camera and the Icon

Constructing an Image

By the late 1970s Debbie Harry had become one of the most photographed women in popular culture. Photographers, magazines and record companies understood the extraordinary power of her image. Whether posed, spontaneous, glamorous or playful, each photograph contributed to a growing public mythology. These works show how photography transformed a downtown musician into an international cultural symbol.
Debbie Harry with a cat, New York City, 1977, photographed by Chris Stein.
Debbie Harry with cat, New York City, 1977TMPG·5670
Chris Stein From $1,000
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Debbie Harry with the Vulture Dolls, New York City, 1977, photographed by Chris Stein.
Debbie Harry with Vulture Dolls, New York City, 1977TMPG·4086
Chris Stein From $1,000
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Debbie Harry reading on tour, United States, 1978, photographed by Chris Stein.
Debbie Harry reading on tour, United States, 1978TMPG·7142
Chris Stein From $1,000
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Debbie Harry being photographed by Andy Warhol, New York City, 1977, photographed by Chris Stein.
Debbie Harry photographed by Andy Warhol, New York City, 1977TMPG·3110
Chris Stein From $1,000
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Andy Warhol with Debbie Harry, New York City, 1978, photographed by Chris Stein.
Andy Warhol with Debbie Harry, New York City, 1978TMPG·1270
Chris Stein From $1,000
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Debbie Harry in front of Blondie concert posters, photographed by Chris Stein in New York City.
Debbie Harry with posters, New York City, 1978TMPG·1558
Chris Stein From $1,000
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Debbie Harry wearing a Pepsi-Cola shirt, New York City, 1977, photographed by Bobby Grossman.
Debbie Harry "Pepsi", New York City, 1977TMPG·0742
Bobby Grossman From $1,500
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Debbie Harry in shades, New York City, 1977, photographed by Chris Stein.
Debbie Harry "Shades", New York City, 1977TMPG·5430
Chris Stein From $1,000
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Debbie Harry, Dots, New York City, photographed by Chris Stein.
Debbie Harry "Dots", New York City, date unknownTMPG·9894
Chris Stein From $1,000
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Debbie Harry, London, 1977, photographed by Ian Dickson.
Debbie Harry, London, 1977TMPG·1302
Ian Dickson From $1,250
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Debbie Harry in leather jacket, London, 1977, photographed by Sheila Rock.
Debbie in Leathers, Close-Up, London, 1977TMPG·0774
Sheila Rock From $1,000
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Debbie Harry in leather jacket looking over her shoulder, London, 1977, photographed by Sheila Rock.
Debbie in Leathers, Looking Back, London, 1977TMPG·4198
Sheila Rock From $1,000
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Debbie in Leopard, London, 1977, photographed by Sheila Rock.
Debbie in Leopard, London, 1977TMPG·6470
Sheila Rock From $1,000
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Debbie in Leopard "CAT", London, 1977, photographed by Sheila Rock.
Debbie in Leopard "CAT", London, 1977TMPG·6406
Sheila Rock From $1,000
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Debbie Harry Rooftop, London, 1977, photographed by Sheila Rock.
Debbie Harry Rooftop, London, 1977TMPG·7014
Sheila Rock From $1,000
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36 of 162 works