About
New Art Vsion
Still Life Photographer and videographer who brings refinement and freshness to photography, filmy turning whatever he captures through his lens into a highly desirable object – whether it be a fragrance bottle, a watch, a fashion accessory or an item of designer furniture. With his unique ability to achieve proportion and balance, his work features in ad campaigns for luxury brands such as Karl Lagerfeld , Césare Paciotti, Lanvin, Elie Saab, Etiennne Janson, Givenchy and Cartier, as well as on the glossy pages of Vogue, V Magazine and Numéro. Born between Paris, and Senegal, has traveled extensively throughout the world, making lengthy stopovers in Morocco, Milan and New York.
You have been working as a still life filmmaker and art Director for more than ten years. How would you, in your own words, describe your signature photographic style?
“The two main characteristics are composition and light. Personally I prefer images that are simple yet descriptive. I often try to photograph objects the way they are – as honestly and objectively as possible.”
How do you use light to do this?
“I like to set light that feels ‘crisp’ and reveals the texture and shape of the object, emphasizing its unique and visually interesting features. Looking at my work, you will see that most of the light is centered; instead of creating a mood with lights and shadows, I rely on the composition and the objects themselves to set the atmosphere.”
What do you see as your main strengths?
“I believe my strengths owe something to my background as a graphic designer. I apply my in-depth knowledge of and my love for design in my photography. I am a self-taught photographer and filmmaker , and I believe a lot of my qualities derive from not being constrained by the rules or ways of working that schools sometimes impose upon their students. This is something I remember feeling inhibited by in my previous career as a designer.”
What qualities have you brought with you from your previous career?
“An eye for design and composition, which I acquired while working with graphic design and typography. I also have a passion for architecture and Graphic Design and I decided to training myself and build my own design home in Senegal « PrestigeMajorelle », where I studied graphic design, i test inside, art, illustration, design history from Europe and design and Africa design, psychology and sociology people, for inspired me.
How would you say that translates into your work?
“I always aim to create balance in my photographs and films. I like to refer to it as accomplishing symmetrical asymmetry – working with irregular shapes and objects to bring about a result that feels proportional and well-balanced.”
What do other people say about your work?
“Many people use words such as ‘modern’ and ‘fresh crazy Flo ’ when describing my work. I have heard others call it a cross between American simplicity and conceptuality and European sensitivity and flair.”
It is said that you are heavily inspired by typography, art, sculpture and music in your work. Can you explain why this should be so?
“When I was previously working with typography, I would always spend way too much time kerning the words, getting the space between the letters just right. I loved doing that. As a photographer, I feel that working towards the perfect light in a photograph gives me that same sense of satisfaction … altering the angle of the light, seeing how the light changes. I’ve also worked with typography in my own projects, creating actual letters, words and phrases to photograph. Typographers such as Joseph Müller-Brockmann and Erik Spiekermann have produced some amazing work.”
What about the influence of art?
“I’ve always been drawn to simple, abstract art. After having been introduced to Dali paintings and Pierre Soulage, I started thinking about how I could reinterpret them in my own way. I created a set of graphic sculptures, which I then photographed in Senegal.”
How has sculpture influenced you?
“I am a great fan of the work of the artist Pierre Soulage, Albert Elbaz, Karl Lagerfeld, and Cesare Pacciotti . I have worked with his sculptures as a model for a series of images for La mode en image with last Director Nathalie Rozborski.
Your collaboration with Karl Lagerfeld seems to have been very fruitful for both parties.
“Yes, I would say that is very true. For three full years, I basically had complete freedom in my creation of still-life beauty stories for the magazine. This gave me lots of opportunities to experiment. I believe the results were quite unique in many ways.”