BEYOND FASHION

EVENT DESCRIPTION

Beyond Fashion showcases the work of acclaimed fashion photographers from around the world. The works demonstrate how fashion photography has moved past the simple presentation of product lines to reflect on the reality of our lives, to explore our aspirations and to push at the boundaries of creativity.

Including works by Nick Knight, Peter Lindbergh, Viviane Sassen, Paolo Roversi, Miles Aldridge, and Ellen von Unwerth – as well as an exciting new generation of fashion photographers – Beyond Fashion celebrates the vision and creativity of these artists and image-makers, and documents how fashion photography has become a new and exciting visual language.

Divided into four sections: Allure, Fantasy, Realism, and Surrealism, the exhibition tells the story of how fashion photography has become more than a commercial device, and has evolved into an art form in its own right. Viewers will travel from the glossy setting of the photography studio to the grassroots of street photography, and discover the vast and diverse forms which fashion photography can take.

They will also see some of the most iconic images, famous faces and dynamic brands in contemporary culture. From classic VOGUE covers to Victoria Beckham’s legs in Marc Jacobs’ shopping bag – this collection of works features supermodels and stars like Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss and Christy Turlington; designers such as Christian Dior, Commes des Garcons, Alexander McQueen and Valentino, and street style legend The Sartorialist.

In addition to over 100 photographs, a section of the exhibition is dedicated to moving images – highlighting the importance of film in today’s fashion imagery. This will feature the works of SHOWstudio, the website founded and directed by Nick Knight, one of the first and most high-profile image-makers to adopt digital film as a medium for showcasing fashion.

The exhibition concludes with an installation entitled Under Your Smell; a project that invites visitors to experience an alternative and dynamic way to engage with fashion imagery. The students of the Bachelor Photography of the ECAL/University of Art and Design Lausanne offer a visual interpretation of Jean Paul Gaultier’s perfumes. In a series of staged images, perfumes become the backdrop for stories of transgression and fantastical projections.

This exhibition is curated by Nathalie Herschdorfer, Director of Photo Elysée in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is produced by the Foundation for the Exhibition of Photography.