Fashion Photography Power Duos
The most influential photography couples of the fashion industry right now.
photo collage by Katerina Stamatopoulou, 2018.
Fashion photography, whether in print or online, will always capture humans’ attention and create emotions. Since its earliest days and the invention of photography at the beginning of the 19thcentury, fashion photography expressed the photographer’s vision about style, attitude, makeup, story of the subjects, lifestyle and in this way it attracted the attention of the viewers.
During its long history, there have been many photographers who have served this creative means of fashion as art. From legends like Horst P. Horst and Cecil Beaton to Helmut Newton and Guy Bourdin who inspired more recent ones like Steven Meisel and Peter Lindbergh.
But, apart from the solo artists of fashion photography, there are also some couples who, through their creative mood and love for this magical world, create unique photos together that leave their mark. Such, photography couples are the ‘Power Duos’ of Fashion Photography.
PORTER magazine, Issue 2, 2014 (inezandvinoodh.com)
TOM FORD RTW, FW2016 (inezandvinoodh.com)
VOGUE March 2017 (inezandvinoodh.com)
Inez & Vinoodh
Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin have been working together since 1986. The power duo from the Netherlands met as students at the Amsterdam Fashion Academy in the 1980s. They collaborated for the first time when Matadin, then fashion designer, was looking for a photographer for his lookbook. From then on, they not only became photographic partners, but they also became partners in life.
They have been digital photography pioneers, and they have invented their own personal style. YSL, Balmain, Balenciaga, Givenchy, Jean-Paul Gaultier, and many other houses have collaborated with them for their campaigns. Their award-winning work appears in countless fashion magazines; Vogue, Vogue Italia, W, Visionaire, Vanity Fair, and Harper’s Bazaar to name a few.
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Mert Alas, INTERVIEW magazine, 2014 (interviewmagazine.com)
Mert & Marcus, Calvin Klein Underwear, 2015.
Mert & Marcus, LOVE magazine, 2013 (thelovemagazine.co.uk)
Mert & Marcus
Born in the same year, but in different countries with very different cultures. Mert Alas was born in Istanbul, Turkey, and Marcus Piggott was born in Wales, UK.
They first met in 1994 in England while Piggott’s was a photographer’s assistant and Alas was a fashion model. They worked together a couple of times, and in 1999 they decided to join forces.
The strong use of color brought by Alas’s Turkish heritage and Piggott’s expertise in art and antiques create a unique, highly polished, hyperreal fantasy outcome. They have worked for numerous fashion and beauty houses such as Lancome, Missoni, and Fendi. Also, Vogue Paris, Love Magazine, and The Gentlewoman are some of the magazines that have hosted many of Mert and Marcus’ photos on their pages.
Cattelan & Ferrari, KENZO FW2013 (toiletpapermagine.org)
Cattelan & Ferrari, NEW YORK magazine, August 2017 (toiletpapermagazine.org)
Cattelan & Ferrari, KENZO FW2014 (toiletpapermagine.org)
Maurizio Cattelan & Pierpaolo Ferrari
“We would like to evoke familiarity and disgust at the same time. We desire to bring seemingly normal situations to their very extreme”, says the provocative Italian photographic couple during an interview with Dazed and Confused. Cattelan is a contemporary artist and Ferrari is the photographer of this multi-tasking duo, who are also the founders of the biannual magazine Toiletpaper. They are more well-known for Kenzo’s surreal campaigns and their longstanding collaboration with MGSM.
Their breaking-down-the-rules-of-beauty and cheeky work have made appearances in fashion magazines such as W, New York Magazine, Vogue, Elle, and Dazed&Confused.
Interview with STORM’S Noelle Doukas And Christopher Yianoullou
Noelle and Christopher have over twenty-five years experience between them, spent working at the forefront of the modeling industry. Both agents exude bright dynamic personalities with an obvious passion for the talent they represent.
We chat about STORM, which has been one of the most influential model agencies since Sarah Doukas, Noelle’s mother, opened its doors in 1987, and move onto the innovations within the market and the changes of their model requirements.
FMD: What are the key attributes that STORM looks for when scouting for models?
Chris: We look for standards like height and beautiful skin and great bone structure, but our industry has started to celebrate the more unique aspects of the girl – who she is and what she’s about; her style, her personality. There is much more to it, and you can’t just scout by looking at someone, you really need to talk to that person and get a feel for who they are. Clients like ASOS and Urban Outfitters want to do more profile pieces, and they want real people, so it makes it more fun for us because [models] don’t have to be strictly 5’10” minimum anymore. It’s more flexible, and more fun; so yeah it’s about character more than anything really.
FMD: Whenever you bring international models into London; what is your process, and does STORM have specific facilities to accommodate them?
Noelle: It all depends on how long you are bringing girls in for, and also what you are bringing them in for. There are some girls we bring in for periods of time, say two to three months; in which case you set them up in a house. We do have model apartments, but we also have a wide range of people who are like second moms who look after them, because it is quite daunting if they have never been into the territory before. Obviously, if it’s a girl who has never been to the UK, we take a bit of time explaining how to get around, because the girls have go-sees or castings every day. They probably have four to five castings a day. So, they kind of hit the ground running really. Sometimes, we try to set them up with other girls so they get a feel for what they are doing. We do have an assistant on board that goes through everything with them, and gives them a UK phone and tries to introduce them to transport etc. London’s enormous isn’t it, so expecting these girls to go to appointment to appointment is really quite daunting.
FMD: Are the castings based in London or all over the UK?
Noelle: They are completely sporadic. With castings, you can’t dictate what time it is, what area it is, so a girl could be coming from E1 and then having to go to SE11 (London postcodes with a distance of five miles) and she’s got a small amount of time to do it. If you get a bigger international girl, say she’s here for three days, it’s easier to put them in a car. They are doing a ton of appointments a day, back to back. I mean, since Uber’s come around it’s changed things quite a bit. It’s not that expensive to Uber from one place to another.
FMD: Uber’s made a model’s life a lot easier.
Noelle: It makes it probably a lot easier. I do feel for them though. I have done go-sees and castings with one girl once, and I thought, “I do feel sorry for them.”
Chris: It’s not as glamorous as you think.
FMD: Describe the London Market and Clientele.
Noelle: Well, I think first of all we’ve got the best editorial, I would say in the world, because we have the high-end publications like Vogue, Harpers, and Elle, and we also have the really kind of cool magazines like Dazed, and Wonderland. Now, there are a lot of online publications, there’s a pop-up magazine every day.
Chris: It’s a super creative city, with all the great designers and fashion schools. The students’ work is incredible here.
Noelle: It’s a good market to develop a girl because, as I’ve said, when we’ve got such a wide range of editorials; it’s good to develop their books. But, I think another great thing about London is that we have the advertising, the catalogues, and the E-com, and so a girl is pretty much guaranteed to make a nice amount of money. I mean the British pound is pretty shocking at the moment, but prior to that, it was great! No, it’s a great city! Our Fashion week is better than it ever has been before. I think a lot more girls are coming to London to do the shows, it’s a lot more relevant. So, I would say London’s definitely kind of an all-rounder. You know the only other thing is there is not as much competition, because most girls base themselves in New York, at which point you’re competing with x amount of girls, as opposed to a less amount of cool, international new faces.
FMD: How easy is it for new models to acclimate to the London Market?
Chris: I think for the younger girls it’s actually quite nice. We’re an English speaking country; the Tube (Underground) is pretty self-explanatory, and the English culture is very polite, and we like to help!
Noelle: They do get chaperoned though, if they are too young. We’d never let a girl under eighteen go out on her own, ever.
Chris: Yeah, and that also helps when they get settled in, there’s an English person there to teach them the ropes, the underground etc., how it works. We’ve never had any problems.
FMD: You mentioned that STORM has model apartments; are there strict rules enforced for the people staying in them?
Noelle: I wish we did, it’s a nightmare! It’s funny, model apartments are generally there for brand new girls, but sometimes girls end up living there for a couple of years. Some girls are actually messier maybe than boys, from what the cleaners tell us. (laugh)
Chris: Yeah, it’s bad! (laugh)
Noelle: It’s not good! It’s not good! I can’t understand it because I think if you can do this to someone else’s house, would you actually do this in your own house? I don’t think they would. Occasionally, we have to get pest control, painters and decorators coming in, or there are doors being broken off hinges or whatever it is. They’re young kids aren’t they; they’re not at home with their parents. I do get girls specifically saying, “I don’t want to stay in a model apartment”. We have a group of really lovely people who rent out rooms, and you know, I think they like it, the international girls who’ve not been here before, they feel kind of nurtured. It’s actually nice to be in a family environment.
FMD: What would you say are the most important qualities models should have?
Noelle: A voice and a personality for sure. I’ve seen the most beautiful girls in the world that have no personality, and I’m not meaning that in a derogative way, I just mean that, I think it’s like dating actually; you can think ‘oh, you’re fairly attractive’, but it’s the connection you have that actually develops how they come across, how you relate to that person – and actually personalities can make or break someone. You meet someone who’s really arrogant and full of themselves, and all that beauty just completely diminishes, whereas someone with a great personality can win you over in a different way, and you see a totally different side of them.
For me, if I were a casting director, it would be that. And it’s interesting to see how [it affects modeling], say you bring in a girl you don’t know particularly well, and she gets 30 options in a month and not one of them confirms, you start to think ‘there’s something not quite right there’, or you can get a girl that you weren’t entirely sure about but she has an amazing personality and her chart is full of red confirmations.
Chris: It’s true though!
FMD: Is there a common mistake that stands out as something models repeat over and over again?
Noelle: I would probably say approaching things with too much negativity.
Chris: Yeah, I was about to say that – or over thinking.
Noelle: When they start to analyze too much, girls can get very down on themselves, and I think that can come across to people. You can get yourself into a hole and it’s difficult to climb back out of it.
But I think it’s like that for everyone, for everything in life. I always write my Gratitudes down every day, things that I’m grateful for. If you try and make yourself feel more positive, then positivity comes back to you. But, I think when you go into anything with a negative view; it’s not going to turn itself around. You’ve got to be strong, and I think you’ve got to have a strong backbone. But saying this, I personally wouldn’t want to be judged on my looks every day of my life. It takes a certain quality of person.
Chris: Yeah, everyone thinks it’s an easy job, but…
Noelle: It’s one of the hardest. The worst thing a girl could ever do is to have a negative view on the industry, or herself, or whatever it is, you know, unless they’re enjoying it, loving it, I try to discourage them doing it at all. Because I think they’re so young, surely in that age group you’re supposed to be having the time of your life, not scrutinizing every part of yourself.
