For A#7, Kris Van Assche has called upon a pool of talent from across the world to envision his first publication. Through young and old - from the fashion, artistic and even pornographic worlds - the list of contributors is far from a cloistered Parisian set, which one may assume the designer of Dior Homme may call upon to direct their aesthetic. One of the few French contributors to Kris’s magazine is photographer Gaëtan Bernard, who offers an intimate backstage view of Kris’s studio and shows at both his own label and Dior Homme. Gaëtan shoots often in black and white, favouring movement and a theatrical balance of light and shadow to create filmic, emotional moments.

In these images, Gaëtan captures the mateship and light-hearted fun between the models at Kris’s show in January of 2008, as they ‘rumble’ backstage before the show. All hailing from Argentina and Brazil, one can only imagine the raucous Spanish and Portuguese calls that would have echoed around the room, as the handsome young imports began the adrenalin-pumping preparations for show time.

Keep reading as we showcase more of Gaëtan’s work in the coming weeks, as he us further exclusive content from his work with Kris Van Assche and the house of Dior.