A new initiative by a group of world-renowned photographers, including Annie Leibovitz, has been launched calling on travel companies to change the meaning of ‘all-inclusive’.
The campaign, in partnership with Celebrity Cruises, aims to steer the travel industry’s notion of the phrase away from ‘a holiday where everything is included in one price’ to one that signals ‘everyone is welcome’. To this end, the campaign wants to ‘improve the representation of all people who travel in marketing materials’.
To help travel companies ‘kickstart their journeys towards more inclusive travel marketing’ it has launched the world’s first free-to-use ‘open source’ travel image library – the ‘All-Inclusive Photo Project’ (AIPP) – which contains striking images from Leibovitz and the other photographers of underrepresented groups enjoying offerings on Celebrity’s ships and within the destinations visited.
Above is Leibovitz’s striking photo of Abby Chava Stein, an American transgender author, activist, blogger, model, speaker and rabbi, relaxing by the pool on the Resort Deck of Celebrity Apex
This is Rachel Fleit, a Brooklyn-based writer and creative director of Killer Films Media, and proud advocate for women with Alopecia, captured by Leibovitz taking a dip in the sea
Another powerful image from Leibovitz – Waris Singh Ahluwalia, a Sikh American designer, actor and activist, meditating in his room on a Celebrity ship
Here, Leibovitz has photographed John Forte, the American recording artist, enjoying a cruise with his family
Above is Haitian-born Paola Mathe, photographed by Leibovitz. Mathe is an entrepreneur, creative director and creator of Fanm Djanm (which means ‘strong woman’ in Haitian Creole), and seen here lounging with her son on the Rooftop Garden onboard the Celebrity Apex cruise ship
The collection features models, musicians, athletes, artists, activists, refugees and more, ‘all change-makers in their own right’.
Alongside New York-based Leibovitz – a long-time advocate for the LGBTQ+ community – photographers involved in the project include Giles Duley, an English documentary photographer and disability campaigner who became a triple amputee while working in conflict zones; Naima Green, a New York-based photographer known for challenging preconceptions of race, gender and sexuality; and Jarrad Seng, an Australia-based photographer of Malaysian-Chinese descent.
The image library features Jillian Mercado, a model and wheelchair user with muscular dystrophy in the plush dining room of a cruise ship; recording artist and former Fugees collaborator John Forte enjoying a cruise with his family; and Abby Chava Stein, the author, activist and first openly transgender woman raised in a Hasidic community snapped lounging next to the pool – all photographed by Leibovitz.
In this Leibovitz image, U.S actress and fashion model Jillian Mercado, one of the few professional models who has a visible physical disability in the fashion industry, enjoys a meal
Pictured above is Jarrad Seng’s photo of married couple Jessie Stoelwinder and Em Williams, running through the water with their young daughter
This image by Green shows Devin Mitchell, a history teacher and lacrosse coach, relaxing during a massage at the spa on Celebrity Edge
LEFT: Travel influencers and LGBTQ+ activists Aisha and Lexie, drinking onboard the Celebrity Apex cruise ship, photographed by Duley. RIGHT: Esther Onek, social worker, advocate and refugee, photographed by Seng wading through the sea
Other models in the gallery include Micah Ramos, a Filipino, non-binary model photographed by Green enjoying holiday time on a Caribbean island, and Amy Conroy, who was diagnosed with cancer at age 12 and after a year of chemotherapy and a leg amputation, went on to play wheelchair basketball for Great Britain as a three-time Paralympian. She’s photographed by Duley playing volleyball in Spain.
Seng, meanwhile, took a picture of Ester Onek, a social worker, advocate, and refugee from South Sudan enjoying the beaches of Margaret River in Western Australia.
‘What Annie and all of the talented artists involved in this project have captured so beautifully, is that for vacations to really live up to the marketing moniker ‘all-inclusive,’ then they should start by using images that are inclusive of all, not just a few,’ said Celebrity Cruises President and CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo.
This joyful image was taken by Seng, and shows photographer Jaimen Hudson with his wife, Jess, on the beach with a kangaroo
LEFT: British Paralympic basketballer Amy Conroy looks out to sea from the balcony of her stateroom on Celebrity Apex in this stunning image by Duley. RIGHT: Carlos Martinez, an actor and health counsellor for an LGBTQIA+ organisation, and his partner Joel Vazquez enjoying the clear ocean water
Above is another photo by Duley, featuring couple Tim and Shaheen, Lexie, and British Paralympian Amy, walking to the beach holding a volleyball
Hudson and his wife, Jess, observing the stunning shoreline from the mesmerising beach
Aisha and Lexie are photographed here again by Duley, sunbathing next to each other on the beach
Pictured here are Tegan Gasior, Indigenous woman and survivor contestant, and Ash Penfold, indigenous youth worker, sharing a moment of laughter by a rock pool
Lutoff-Perlo continued: ‘We want our marketing – as with everything we do as a cruise line – to represent how the world looks, and what we experience on our ships daily, as guests and crew from all walks of life work and play together to create a really special onboard environment.’
Michael Scheiner, Celebrity Cruise Chief Marketing Officer, added: ‘As global brands, we have a powerful platform to act as a catalyst of positive change. We know we have more work to do and we hope we inspire others to join us on this important journey. By leveraging our collective travel industry might, we can begin to make travel marketing truly “all-inclusive”.’
The AIPP collection, which Celebrity Cruises aims to add to over time, is due to officially launch in early April.
For more information on the campaign, visit www.celebritycruises.com/PhotoProject. Travel brands and companies interested in accessing the AIPP library can visit www.allinclusivephotoproject.com.
This picture by Duley shows Aisha and Lexie eating dinner with model Tim at the Eden Restaurant on board the Celebrity Apex
Above is Duley’s portrait of Monique Dior Jarrett, a model and wheelchair dance champion, taking in the views onboard Celebrity Apex from the running track
Here, Tim and Shaheen, Amy, Monique, and Aisha and Lexie laugh together on the deck of Celebrity Apex, captured by portrait and documentary photographer Duley
Photographer Green captured this peaceful image of Michaela Duerson, a model, actress and voice-over artist, doing yoga on the deck on Celebrity Edge
Saxsen Norton and Hero Otway, both models and actresses, and GeoVanna Gonzalez, a Miami-based artist, are photographed here by Green on the deck of the Celebrity Edge
LEFT: Duerson relaxes by the pool on Celebrity Edge, photographed by Green. RIGHT: Duley captures keen travellers and recently engaged Tim and Shaheen sharing a hug in the sea
