Beauty and femininity are ageless and can’t be contrived, and glamour, although the manufacturers won’t like this, cannot be manufactured. Not real glamour; it’s based on femininity.
Idea
introduction
project description
The Fashion industry is one of the fastest growing sectors around the globe. According to the recent fashion statistics, the market value is estimated about three trillion dollars or two and half trillion euros. Inevitably, that economic expansion creates more opportunities, prosperities, welfare and of course new challenges and problems.
Giulia Mensitieri is an anthropologist who is primarily interested in subjects like: globalization, transformation of work and the mechanism of creating dreams of future objects of desire in contemporary capitalism. In her new book called ‘The most beautiful Job in the World: Behind the Scenes in the Fashion Industry’, she describes the precarity of designers, models, freelance creators, hairdressers, make-up artists, … Shortly, everyone who creates wealth for the fashion industry elites, but living at the edge themselves.
So, the subject of this project is inspired by that interesting book of Giulia Mensitieri. However, her field of expertise covers different socio-economical aspects of the fashion industry, while this project focuses specifically on glamour fashion models.
Beyond Image follows a visual discovery path into the professional and private world of two different glamour fashion models, with the similar concerns. Obviously, this domain of fashion is a leading universe by its own, what makes it almost impossible to cover that entire spectrum of the genre with just one photo project.
Instead, the focus here is on the unrevealed contrast between the success of two top models and the emotional impact of that on their mental well-being.
There is this general assumption that the life of top models is just outstanding luxurious. They wear elegant dresses, pose on the magazine covers, travel around the world all the time and all the other fancy things you can imagine.
In fact, that constant exposure to the outside world leads to mental and physical instability. It is due to those consequences that models give up, get depressed and even want to run away.
inspiration
Photography
Movie
Planning
moodboard
Creative team
Location
(scouting)
Belgium
This place is located in the south of Belgium and is known as ‘The grand canyon belgium’.
after a search on google, The rocky landscape got really my attention. so I drove to the spot with my friend, Rostam, to take a closer look.
From the moment of arrival, we immediately loved the nature! the only down part was the distractions in the background, since I was looking for clean rocks and monochromatic creamy color.
Me and my videographer, Rostam, woke up at 4 Am to get in Cap Blanc Nez before the sunrise. after some covid-19 control at the border of france and some jogging to the top of the hill, we just made it to experience that magical, orange-yellow upcoming sun! I must say, it was an spiritual moment with the nature.
Let’s come back to the point: I truly loved the beach with the mountain in background! But repeatedly, I had the same problem here as in fondry des chiens in Belgium. there was too much distraction in the background, like the greenery between the rocks, the high contrast on the rocks of the mountain in the background. this effect could be stronger during the harsh sun hours. so I wanted to avoid that kind of scene from the beginning.
That is why we kept driving further, with the hope to find what I was wishing for.
Finally I have found the location I was looking for! And guess what? It just happened by chance! While driving across the road, I saw a sand dune at my right side and I immediately parked the car aside. After that, of course I couldn’t hold myself to go and see every corner of this place!
Can’t wait for the shooting day!
Please let me know in the comment BELOW what you think about it.
Shooting
Self experience
This project is the biggest, the most challenging and the most fascinating out of all the previous ones executed. Beside the Covid-19 pandemic, as the biggest obstacle, this is the first program I am organizing with a team of ten people.
I truly feel lucky for my collaboration with the professional designer, Anita Familje. At this stage I share my idea with her and she immediately starts drawing some sketches of the design I had in mind. After that, we go to buy a thirty-two-meter-long fabric to make the dresses, which was not easy to find that much long piece of fabric. But we finally managed to find it in Antwerp city. The other advantage in this project is the contribution of two professional models: Grace Yapo is best West-Africa model 2017 and best Belgium catwalk model 2018 and Maria Skalozub, best Russian model. I am very confident working with them and my lighting assistants.
Finding a suitable location for the project was not that challenging, but doing the actual shooting was very stressful due to the weather. The first shooting date got rescheduled because of the rain. Even the second time was cloudy at the arrival, but soon the sun came up.
I must confess that the inflexibility of a photo shoot on sand is incomparable with any other photo project I did before. It cost tremendous amount of patience and energy to just move around the dunes and hills. Luckily, mission got succeed after a long starting from 6 o’clock morning till 12 o’clock midnight.
Results
epilogue
Beyond Image has been the most impactful project I have done so far. It is just a different level of work, creativity, collaboration, visual exploration, and personal development as a photographer.
In the visual literature, there is overwhelming information to find about the professional world of female fashion models, but lacking at-tention on their personal well-being, mental or physical health. After all, beside those illusions of beauty, luxury, prestige and fame, they are real women with daily human problems.
So this project is a contribution to the intrapersonal struggle of female fashion models and the contrast between their professional and personal life.
credits
Mentor
Alain de Halleux
Design dresses
Anita Familje
anitafamiljeart@gmail.com
Hairstyling & Makeup
Nikki Amable
nikki@outstanding-kids.com
www.outstanding-kids.com
Models
Grace Yapo
Instagram: grace.emmanuellayage
grace-emma@hotmail.fr
Maria Skalozub
m@zengmarie.com
www.zengmarie.com
Camera
Rostam Amiri
rostam.amiri420@gmail.com
Lighting Assistants
Sammy Ahmadi
Ramish Samadzai
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