One of the students in my class wrote a paper about the Spring 2012 Michael Kors ad campaign shot by none other than celeb-photographer Mario Testino. I think he was too kind. A few thoughts why.
I recently read what could perhaps be one of the best stories/episodes in recent fashion - understood here as a fashion rather than an actually creative field of activity - on Newsweek’s Daily Beast. I will not spoil this with my own point de vue, and let the poet speak for himself. Nasty snaps!
Mario on the other hand, inhabits a world where such faux-pas are quite easily excused (not that Michael’s weren’t or aren’t). Because in the end the fashion world will always attract just about the right amount of never truly damaging criticism and never truly original praise. Perhaps it’s just beyond the threshold of either, or.
But really now, forget about expecting fashion photography to address any issues beyond itself…even by accident (perhaps the 2008 Vogue in the slums of India episode has not been that easily forgotten). Forget even about totally overdone 21st century fantasies of hot sex on Safari, beautiful people sweating it out in digitally mastered Nat Geo environments, perpetuating demeaning images of Africans, oh! etc. My biggest question has to do with when: when will this work be done? And I don’t wish to sound overcritical, or apocalyptic, or even nihilistic. Besides, I am a romantic fool so I hope. It’s more about being bored, and wondering, to repeat myself, when will this work be finished?
Fait accompli…semi-conservatives would say there’s not much alternative. Which is really not true. The left (the small part of it that would ever engage with such frivolous matters) would find this the least complicated “philosophical” question of the past 2 centuries. It’s all economics in the end, of the kind that can only exist under capitalism. I don’t have a theory on this, or many more thoughts. And I’m a novice who’s become very recently interested in this because of highly accidental circumstances. I’ll just leave you with - I have no doubt about it - the most powerful mental image in this little essay of mine, Michael Kors’ bodysuit for men with little snaps and all. Ouch!
PS: didn’t Mario use to have an amazing amped up catwalk music all you can eat being a fashion photographer is the best thing in the world intro video on his website? where did it go that perfect example? and why did it go?
