Press Release

GAP CELEBRATES INDIVIDUALITY AND STYLE WITH THE INTRODUCTION OF 'INDIVIDUALS: PORTRAITS FROM THE GAP COLLECTION'

Exclusive New Book Supporting (PRODUCT) RED™ Features Cover Images of Iconic Celebrities Including Sarah Jessica Parker, Willie Nelson, Kim Basinger, Dizzy Gillespie, Whoopi Goldberg, and Will Kemp

SAN FRANCISCO – September 20, 2006 – Know who you are and be it.  Celebrate your uniqueness with passion and conviction. This is the powerful philosophy at the heart of the exclusive new book "Individuals: Portraits from the Gap Collection" (Melcher Media/October 17, 2006/$35.00/Trade Paperback Original). It is also the philosophy that has driven more than three decades of Gap advertising – ads that have created an indelible imprint on American pop culture.

Since 1974, icons from virtually every artistic field have sat for Gap advertisements and "Individuals" brings 250 of these illustrious images together for the first time in Gap’s history.  Portraits of Tom Brady, William S. Burroughs, Miles Davis, Josh Duhamel, Salma Hayek, Scarlett Johansson, Karl Lagerfeld, Madonna, Joni Mitchell and Alanis Morissette are just a few of the influential icons featured. The photographers who shot these images – including Annie Leibovitz, Herb Ritts, Steven Meisel, Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin, Michael Jansson, Michael Thompson, and Albert Watson – are as eminent and talented as the celebrities themselves.

“Gap advertising has always reinforced the unique philosophy behind our brand – that nothing is as important as individual spirit and that individual spirit is what influences great personal style,” said Cynthia Harriss, president of Gap. “We’re thrilled to introduce this amazing book featuring so many powerful "individuals" and hope it inspires people to celebrate and embrace the individual spirit that lives within all of us.” 

"Individuals" is a book you can feel good about buying and giving, since it is part of Gap’s global partnership with (PRODUCT) RED™. Founded by Bono and Bobby Shriver, (PRODUCT) RED is an initiative launching in the U.S. this fall that is designed to get companies around the world involved in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Africa. 100 percent of Gap's profits from the sale of "Individuals" – and half of Gap’s profits from the sale of other Gap (PRODUCT) RED products launching this fall – will go to the Global Fund to finance programs that help women and children affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa. 

"Individuals" features six different cover images including imaginative portraits of Kim Basinger, Dizzy Gillespie, Whoopi Goldberg, Willie Nelson, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Will Kemp. Available in six vibrant colors – blue, red, gray, khaki, purple and olive – and packaged with a limited edition music CD, this book is a must-have for lovers of photography, music and pop culture.

The limited edition CD included in "Individuals" features fifteen of the most memorable songs featured in Gap ads including recordings by Madonna featuring Missy Elliott (“Into the Hollywood Groove”), Dwight Yoakam (“Crazy Little Thing Called Love”), Neil Diamond (“Forever in Blue Jeans”), Earth, Wind & Fire (“September”), Bill Withers (“Lovely Day”), John Legend (“Hello, It’s Me”), Donovan (“Mellow Yellow”), Quincy Jones (“Stuff Like That”), Jason Mraz (“One Love”), The O’Jays (“Love Train”), Louis Prima (“Jump, Jive and Wail”), Seals & Crofts (“Summer Breeze”), Joss Stone (“God Only Knows”), The American Breed (“Bend Me Shape Me”) and The Crystal Method (“Busy Child”).

Five celebrities have contributed essays on individualism for the book:
• Rapper Missy Elliott tells how she was inspired by her mother’s determination to take control of her own life after an abusive marriage.
• Recording legend Willie Nelson talks about the setbacks he experienced when he tried to fit the mold of other country performers.
• Actress Sharon Stone recalls how her unpopularity as a child inevitably gave her the confidence to go against the grain as an adult: “When you’re in high school, your success is measured by how much you are liked by everybody else. But from the second you graduate to the end of your life, it’s measured by how much of an individual you are.”
• Author Tama Janowitz discusses the nature of originality throughout the years.
• Supermodel Veronica Webb recalls how her own individual style was influenced by others while she was growing up.

In her essay from "Individuals," Tama Janowitz captures the essence of the portraits featured in the book – “All you have to do is look at the eyes in the pictures to see an inner strength that all these people have in common. These are portraits of men and women who are not worrying about fitting in, being liked, or climbing a ladder of success. These are strong faces, laughing faces, tough faces, serious faces. These are lined faces, wrinkled faces, regal faces, silly, unafraid faces.”

Art directed by Trey Laird, Creative Director of Gap, "Individuals" will be available in mid October at select Gap stores in the U.S. and Canada as well as Indigo bookstores in Canada and all major book retailers in the U.S. including Borders, Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com and independent bookstores throughout the country. A paperback edition will retail for $35 in the U.S. and $40 in Canada while a deluxe hard cover version, packaged in a limited edition Gap denim tote, will retail for $150 in the U.S. and $180 in Canada.

Whether it’s a legend who continues to endure or a brave new talent who is taking the pop culture world in a bold new direction, "Individuals" is a stunning tribute to the people who have shaped our cultural landscape and the style the espoused in they process. 

PUBLICATION INFORMATION:

INDIVIDUALS: PORTRAITS FROM THE GAP COLLECTION
Published by Melcher Media, distributed by D K
Category: Photography/Fashion            
Pub Date: October 17, 2006
Retail Price: $35.00 trade paperback original  
Format: Cloth-covered paperback with endpapers in 6 different colors. Packaged with music CD.
Trim: 11 x 11" (square)
Page count: 256
250 full-color and b&w photographs
ISBN: 1-59591-015-8

About (RED) and (PRODUCT) RED
(RED)'s primary objective is to engage the private sector in raising awareness and funds for the Global Fund to help fight AIDS in Africa. Companies whose products take on the (PRODUCT) RED mark contribute a significant percentage of the sales from that product to the Global Fund to finance AIDS programs in Africa, with an emphasis on the health of women and children.  Current partners are: American Express, Armani, Converse, Gap and Motorola. MySpace.com is the first media sponsor. WWW.JOINRED.COM