David LaChapelle

In the fashion world, I was always an outsider, but I made people look good, so I had a career. ”

Success to me is being a good person, treating people well. ”

For me, it's easier to like more things than to dislike them; I'm not a critic in that sense. I find it easier to like more, to be more open and enjoy more things, which has given me more opportunities. ”

I would rather die than be a serious artist, or a fake artist. ”

I love fashion, beauty, glamour. It's the mark of civilisation. ”

I'm a photographer, period. I love photography, the immediacy of it. I like the craft, the idea of saying 'I'm a photographer.' ”

My mum was one of those people who really wasn't allowed to be an artist, because she worked in a factory and she came from the war and all that stuff. She really has an artist's soul. ”

The adornment of the body is a human need. I don't see anything superficial about it unless your life becomes very materialistic. ”

I like the consistency of having people in my life for a long time. ”

My mother taught me a lot about respect for all living things - for plants and animals. I am a vegetarian. I was brought up that way. ”