US photography icon seeks financial help

US PHOTOGRAPHY icon Annie Leibovitz has turned to a private equity firm for loans to help deal with huge debts which had put her at risk of losing her library of famous pictures, a paper reported yesterday.

Citing people familiar with the deal, the Financial Times said Colony Capital would become Leibovitz's sole creditor and help market her photographs. Some of her best-known images include a Vanity Fair magazine cover of a nude, pregnant Demi Moore and a photo from Rolling Stone of a nude John Lennon embracing Yoko Ono.

"We will be partners in managing her assets and her business so that Annie can spend her time and focus in pursuing her passion as only she can do," Tom Barrack, founder of Los Angeles-based Colony, told the paper.

As well as the archive, 60-year-old Leibovitz risked losing a string of luxury properties after falling behind on payments to lending agency Art Capital. These included three Manhattan houses and a country residence in New York state.

Under the arrangement with Colony, she retains the rights to more than 100,000 photographs and about one million negatives in a Manhattan warehouse, said the paper.

Leibovitz praised Colony as "a dedicated and creative team."

"We will be working on new projects and I will have the support and freedom necessary for nurturing my work and preserving my archive," she said.AFP