A photographer spent 25 years documenting rich people — here’s what she learned

Award-winning documentary photographer and filmmaker Lauren Greenfield has been photographing and interviewing the wealthy since the early 1990s. After attending college at Harvard, Greenfield returned to her home in Los Angeles, and began documenting youth culture.

At that time, she didn’t realize that she was photographing the beginning of “a period of rampant materialism and wealth obsession,” as economist and sociologist Juliet Schor writes in the introduction of “Generation Wealth,” Greenfield’s newest book.      

Since then, Greenfield’s work has expanded internationally — examining megamansions, extravagant bottle service at night clubs, a 24-karat solid gold toilet, America’s obsession with plastic surgery, and much more.

“What I learned from many of [my subjects] is that chasing wealth is unending and ultimately unsatisfying. As the former Wall Street trader Sam Polk recognizes, it’s an addiction like any other, and the more you have, the more you want and the more you think you need,” wrote Greenfield in her introduction. Ahead, a look inside “Generation Wealth.” Captions written by Greenfield.   

SEE ALSO: How Kellyanne Conway makes and spends her $39 million fortune

“Limo Bob, 49, the self-proclaimed ‘Limo King,’ wears thirty-three pounds of gold and a full-length fur coat given to him by Mike Tyson. His fleet of limousines, including a 100-foot-long Cadillac, are outfitted with crystal chandeliers, Jacuzzis, and stripper poles.”

“Xue Qiwen, 43, in her Shanghai apartment, decorated with furniture from her favorite brand, Versace, 2005. In 1994 Xue started a company that sells industrial cable and has since run four more. She is a member of three golf clubs, each costing approximately $100,000 to join.”

“Christina, 21, a Walmart pharmacy technician, en route to her wedding in Cinderella’s glass coach, drawn by six miniature white ponies and with bewigged coachman, Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida.”

See the rest of the story at Business Insider

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