BLACK MASK, PARIS 2006 | PAOLO ROVERSI

Distinguished Italian photographer Paolo Roversi is renowned in the fashion world for the distinctive antiquated aesthetic of his work. Paolo is influenced by 19th century photography, and achieves his signature soft focus, subdued colour and black + white images by working with 8×10 large format polaroid film. 

 For A MAGAZINE CURATED BY JUN TAKAHASHI, Paolo contributed a series of six black and white photographs, the first double page being atmospheric images from his personal archives of a lamp and blanket , taken in Paris in 2002. The following four images are a fashion still life – shadowy portrayals of pieces from UNDERCOVER’s fall winter 2006 collection of wrapped and ornamented headpieces and deconstructed napoleonic tailoring. Roversi’s signature style paired with Takahashi’s garments translates into a disturbing air of dense history in the photos – as though the photographer has stumbled into a forgotten Victorian attic;  the garments hang as though untouched for centuries, the mannequin heads posed in an awkward kiss or leaning clumsily against a wooden post. 

LIGHT + BLANKET, PARIS 2002 | PAOLO ROVERSI

WHITE MASK + THE KISS, PARIS 2006 | PAOLO ROVERSI