Frontier of Dawn

During Cannes Film Festival, I had the opportunity to watch Philippe Garrel's "Frontier of dawn". Though the movie was bashed by the audience and did not get any award, though I did not really like the movie, I liked the pitch : the story of a photographer in love with his model and that is why I went to the theatre to watch it. Actually, the movie does not really deal with photography and the particular link a camera creates between a photographer and his model. Only the beautiful black and white of the movie can relate us to it...

To explore this link further, you can check out Steven Shainberg's Fur starring Nicole Kidman inspired from Diane Arbus' life.

Trailer Fur :



Trailer Frontier of Dawn

Mario Testino

So many interpretations around Peru born Mario Testino. often classed among the Luxury Realists of fashion (along with Steven Meisel, Craig McDean and David Sims), Testino refuses to analyse his work.

Recently, I have read a book by Pierre Assouline called "Rosebud". In this book, Assouline tries to point out the very fact, the un-noticed detail that can explain someone's life. Maybe, Mario Testino's rosebud could be "laughing". He often says that a photo shoot when he laughs with the models is a photo shoot that is successful.

Richard Avedon

I had already posted a link about one of my favourite photographers : Richard Avedon. Actually, one can see similarities between his work and Annie Leibovitz's. Both of them experiences a two sided work. On the one hand, they photographed celebrities, the rich and famous of the world and on the other hand, they were for some time, war photographers. Moreover, they are both portrait driven photographers. However, I feel that the glamour, the style is more moving in Avedon's work than on Leibovitz'. Even if it was not art for art sake, the process was maybe not so part of a promotional campaign and of an industrial process...

Helmut Newton

Helmut Newton is a german born fashion photgrapher who died in 2004. He became famous in the 60s for his work. He used to live in Paris most of his carreer. His style was and remains controversial. Bcause of the mix of sexuality and fashion in his photos, many people consider him as the godfather of the "porno chic" while his advocates consider him as a master of sensuality and a woman lover. Make up your mind...

Annie Leibovitz

Probably one of the best (if not the best) fashion photographer of the world. As a child, she travelled a lot along with her parents (her father was in the army) and her large family. She explains her vocation for photography by all these journeys she went through in the family car, she used to see everything through the frame of the car glass. According to her, photography is "life through a lens". I warmly recommand you to see the documentary about her life untitled "Life through a lens" made by her sister and featuring Mick Jagger, Patti Smith, Yoko Ono, Hilary Clinton, Kirsten Dunst during Marie-Antoinette shooting(sooo beautiful), Anna Wintour (the one who inspired the Devil Wears Prada, praising someone, unique) and many other celebrities photographed by Leibovitz.

The first fashion photographer

Though we have seen the first fashion photography, it was not taken by a photographer whose career was entirely dedicated to this. Though the photo could match a basic definition of fashion photography, it was never shown in a magazine or in a specific place.

Quickly at the beginning of the XXth century, Vogue and Vanity Fair were created by Conde Nast who decided to commission photographers. Among them was Adolf de Meyer. His title, his social connections, his manners, and his taste made him an instant sensation in New York, Newport, and Boston. In De Meyer's images artistry and commerce joined, refuting the Secessionist doctrine that only amateurism insured visual sensitivity and liberty of expression.

http://broadway.cas.sc.edu/broadwayPhotographs/DeMeyerVogueIllustrations.jpg

Perception of beauty

The spot, a time-lapsed look at a woman being made up and then Photoshopped for a billboard, illustrates how our perceptions of beauty are manipulated and distorted. We will show this evolution of the perception of beauty on this blog.