Angelina Jolie Goes Sans Makeup for Louis Vuitton Ad

Angelina Jolie kicked off her stint as the new face of Louis Vuitton this morning with a striking ad for its "Core Values" campaign, which highlights the fashion company's travel roots. In the ad, unveiled by Women's Wear Daily, Jolie is seen floating on a wooden boat in the Siem Reap province in Cambodia, wearing her own clothes and reportedly no makeup (though she does appear to be wearing a bit of eye shadow in the photo). By her side is a well-worn Louis Vuitton Alto bag, which has been in Jolie's possession for years and has now been discontinued.

Cambodia is obviously special to Jolie, 36. She discovered the country in 2000 while filming Lara Croft: Tomb Raider there, and it was from Cambodia that she adopted her first child, Maddox, now 9 years old. Jolie and partner Brad Pitt started a foundation in Cambodia named after Maddox, and Jolie's activism on behalf of refugees the world over began there as well. So it is only fitting that Louis Vuitton decided to portray Jolie in that environment for the campaign.

Jolie was photographed by legendary photographer Annie Liebowitz who, according to WWD, had to shoo four of Jolie's children out of the photograph.

Vuitton's executive vice president Pietro Beccari tells WWD, "People are not used to seeing Angelina in this situation. I like the fact that it's a real moment. This travel message we give through personal journeys is a fundamental one for the brand. This campaign is about a very special person and a very special journey."

Jolie follows in the footsteps of the likes of Bono, Sean Connery, Mikhail Gorbachev, and astronauts Buzz Aldrin, Jim Lovell and Sally Ride, all of whom also appeared in "Core Values" campaigns.

Jolie was reportedly paid a very large sum for the ads -- and she will donate an undisclosed portion of it to charity. Officially, the ad will break on Wednesday in the International Herald Tribune and should run for 18 months.

Source: http://www.ivillage.com/angelina-jolie-goes-sans-makeup-louis-vuitton-ad/1-a-357459

Kate Walsh Katharine McPhee Katharine Towne