Cuba Verticalite
AURELIEN VILLETTE
Beyond basic concerns for documenting and recording for posterity, Aurélien Villette is interested in the description and aestheticization of these unclaimed sites. The play of light, aging materials, and architectural perspectives and structures are highlighted and magnified. Silence is ever present, seemingly corresponding to a bygone era and giving rise to an enigmatic atmosphere that emanates from these photographs, questioning the spectator as to the past life of these places.
SUPER SPORT SUNSET
OLIVIER LAVIELLE
As his world is filled with jazz, swing, blues and rock’n roll, Oliver Lavielle is a fan of the period spanning the 1930s to the 1970s. A tireless globetrotter, he sources his inspiration from the legendary Route 66, which he explores at the wheel of a classic old American car. At gas stations or abandoned on the verges, he stops to take photographs of mythical automobiles and planes with gleaming chrome bodywork: testaments to an amazing era, that of the American Dream, which continues to fascinate him.
Catch
MINA MIMBU
Based in New Zealand, Japanese artist Mina Mimbu is inspired by the magnificent panorama of the Pacific as much as by the innocent charm of childhood to create poetic images full of gentle magic. Through this surprising composition, the artist addresses a message of hope: “There is always beauty, even in obscurity.”
Grow Your Dreams
MINA MIMBU
Based in New Zealand, Japanese artist Mina Mimbu is inspired by the magnificent panorama of the Pacific as much as by the innocent charm of childhood to create poetic images full of gentle magic. Like this flower, the artist invites us to help our dreams blossom, until we see them shine among the stars.
Heal the World
MINA MIMBU
Based in New Zealand, Japanese artist Mina Mimbu is inspired by the magnificent panorama of the Pacific as much as by the innocent charm of childhood to create poetic images full of gentle magic. Through this image, the artist leads the audience into a world in search of peace. Her message: “Heal the world. Forget hate. Lend a hand to those in need.”
1933 PLAZA BUILDINGS NYC
MARIE-LOU CHATEL
Marie-Lou Chatel discovered the digital portal of the American Library of Congress, which constitutes an important pictorial account of American life between 1935 and 1944. From then on, she specialized in the restoration and colorization of old black & white photographs in order to give them extra soul. Technical work, all in precision and high poetic density, oscillating between invention and restitution, it allows the viewer to form an idea of life at that time.
Jumbo
I’M NOT A TROPHY
《JUMBO》, created in 2016 as part of the ‘I’M NOT A TROPHY’ series, draws deep inspiration from the pop art movement and a myriad of influential artists including Robert Rauschenberg, Jasper Johns, Gerard Richter, Jackson Pollock, and Jean-Michel Basquiat. Through a fusion of various photography techniques, the artwork intricately intertwines hand-drawn details with a vibrant color palette, evoking a sense of nostalgia among collectors.
Arno Elias, a profoundly talented musician renowned for his ‘Buddha-Bar’ music, enjoys global popularity. Collaborating with Shakira for United Nations Children’s Fund advertisements, he also spearheads the ‘I’M NOT A TROPHY’ initiative, dedicated to safeguarding endangered species. Teaming up with Cara Delevingne, Elias employs his own hand-drawn mixed-media photography to advocate for wildlife conservation. Shockingly, within less than forty years, our planet has witnessed the loss of over half its wildlife. Captured in 2016, this artwork portrays an elephant within the natural confines of an African wildlife reserve.
Cara Zebra
I’M NOT A TROPHY
Arno Elias has crafted a series of art pieces featuring Cara Delevingne as the central theme. “I’m Not A Trophy” is an organization dedicated to raising awareness about the global extinction crisis facing endangered species, using the medium of photography to ignite greater interest in this crucial issue.
LE TIGRE
I’M NOT A TROPHY
Arno Elias, the famous multi-talented musician, gained international recognition with his compositions pour the Buddha-Bar and an advertising campaign produced with Shakira for the UNICEF. The founder of the “I’m not a Trophy” project, dedicated to saving endangered species, he works with model, Cara Delevigne, to draw public attention to the issue by means of his photographs on which he paints by hand. The Earth has lost over half of its population of wild species in less than 40 years and this image from 2013 depicts a tiger in the region of Kerala in India
KIFARU
I’M NOT A TROPHY
Arno Elias has crafted a series of art pieces with Cara Delevingne as the central focus. “I’m Not A Trophy” is an organization dedicated to raising awareness about the global extinction crisis facing endangered species, using the medium of photography to ignite greater interest in this crucial issue.
SIMBA
I’M NOT A TROPHY
Over the last four decades, Earth has witnessed the loss of nearly half its species, with lion populations plummeting from 450,000 in 1940 to 20,000 in 2010. Each day, 96 elephants fall victim to poaching, while rhino numbers have dwindled by 95%. In response to this urgent crisis, the “I’m Not A Trophy” project emerged. Arno Elias has created a series of artistic works centered around Cara Delevingne. This initiative seeks to galvanize young minds, urging them to champion change for the future.
NEVER GIVE UP ON YOUR DREAMS
ANDREA PAVAN
A professional architect, Italian artist Andrea Pavan specialises in conceptual photography. Fascinated by geometry and the notion of space, he plays with codes to create a surreal world in which light plays the starring role. To illustrate this series, the artist chose to quote American author Dan Brown: “Sometimes a change of perspective is all it takes to see the light.”
GALAXY SOHO
JÖRG WANDERER
Based in Munich, German photographer Jörg Dickmann is an artist who loves travel and nocturnal wanderings. Cityscapes, street scenes, architecture and long exposure times characterise his artistic work. His unique talent for shooting and the digital post-production he undertakes are the result of his passion for photography and his insatiable question for new territories and new experiences.
EL ATENEO
THIBAUD POIRIER
Thibaud Poirier loves libraries and architecture. So he travelled to some of the world’s most beautiful book-lined spaces and photographed them from the centre of the room, to “highlight the symmetry and perspective of the locations” and offer the viewer “a feeling of immersion”. This feeling is emphasised by the lack of human presence in the rooms, “in order to paint surreal and timeless portraits of these monuments.”
WORLD TRADE CENTER MTA TRAIN STATION
BERNHARD HARTMANN
Bernard Hartmann owes his success to his stunning representations of historic buildings and, in the course of his travels, he also questions the meaning and heritage value that is given to this architecture, which have endured the ages and persist in many different cultures.
V.I.P.
Nicole Holz
A French-American adventurer alternating between France and the United States, Luc Hardy is passionate about expeditions to distant lands. His curiosity for the world and his taste for adventure, born on the family farm in Brittany, later matured in the remotest of countries and is now affirming itself through a decisive and exacting photographic style. A member of the New York Explorers’ Club, Luc Hardy has undertaken a number of scientific expeditions.
SUMMER AND BEACH SOUP
MIGUEL VALLINAS
Spanish photographer Miguel Vallinas sees the world around us in a quirky way. Although at first sight his photos appear to be dark, they reveal surprising, even zany elements. His reinterpretation here of an evening meal with an appetizer of everyday objects is particularly delicious. Without even knowing him, we could quite easily imagine Miguel Vallinas as having a dry sense of humour.
THE PRINCESS LOVES FRENCH FRIES
Irina Iv-Skaya
Irina Iv-Skaya was commissioned by a Parisian gallery to create this photo for a Star Wars exhibition. It depicts a princess styled with two macaroons on either side of her head, characteristic of Princess Leia, eating French fries on her throne.
She eats without disgust, but not with gusto either. The composition and the model’s distant attitude leave no room for doubt as to the ironic gaze that the photographer applies to the Star Wars phenomenon.
Rainbow
Mina Mimbu
Japanese artist Mina Mimbu is inspired by her two sons and draws on the innocence of childhood worlds to create candid images, enabling her to escape reality.
Coupled with the magnificent and elusive landscapes of the Pacific, she leaves the spectator with the irresistible desire to reconnect with their inner child.
Talk to the Moon
Mina Mimbu
Based in New Zealand, Japanese artist Mina Mimbu finds inspiration in the sumptuous panoramas of the Pacific, or in the innocent charm of childhood, to create poetic images filled with magic and tenderness. Calming, almost mesmerizing, Wish upon a Star stages wisdom and innocence in a pristine atmosphere.
Adventure
Mina Mimbu
Based in New Zealand, Japanese artist Mina Mimbu finds inspiration in the sumptuous panoramas of the Pacific, or in the innocent charm of childhood, to create poetic images filled with magic and tenderness. Subtle and sincere, Life is Either A Daring Adventure or Nothing pushes the viewer to dream big.
MARILYN MONROE
Jan Werner
Milton Greene met Marilyn Monroe for the first time on a shoot for Look magazine. They became friends and a strong bond of trust was established between them. In front of Milton Greene’s lens, Marilyn Monroe is shown in a different light. She is no longer only a sex symbol or pin-up: the woman of a thousand faces emerges.
He was to take hundreds of photos of the star. Here, she stares into the lens and a mature, confident woman appears, stronger and more independent than ever.
Jane Birkin – Melody Nelson, 1971
Gamma Agency
Released in 1971, The Story of Melody Nelson was Serge Gainsbourg’s first concept-album. Written in collaboration with composer Jean-Claude Vannier, it tells the story of Melody Nelson, a young woman with red hair played by the singer’s muse, Jane Birkin.
The latter lends her voice to the character in several songs on the album, and her image by posing on the album cover. Unsurprisingly, the Gamma agency was on site to document the mythical photo session.
David Bowie London 1976
JAN WERNER
Born in 1951, in Haarlem, Jan began photography in 1972. In 1972, while under contract with an underground group from Manchester, Jan was brought to cross the Atlantic. The discovery of the United States will be an electric shock.
From Bowie to Mickael Jackson via Blondie and Freddy Mercury, Jan does not photograph musical currents but men and women who give themselves to the stage with passion.
Freddie Mercury-Queen
Jan Werner
Jan Werner was born in 1951, in Haarlem. In 1970, the young 19-year-old believed he had found his calling working as a stagehand during a visit to his family in London. In 1972, Jan Werner permanently left the Netherlands and toured with music groups. In 1972, while working for an underground group from Manchester, Jan had to cross the Atlantic. “At the age of 21, I had a morbid fear of existence. Through socio-political measures, I was looking for excuses to avoid reality and achieve my desire to create.”
He dropped his militant activities and reconnected with his acquaintances in the music world. This led him to start working with artists again, but this time as a photographer. Over a career spanning 39 years, Jan Werner worked with rock and pop idols from the following generations.
HAIRCUT 100
Elena Iv-Skaya
Artist Elena Iv-skaya began her career in photography in 2013, one year after moving to the heavenly Reunion Island. The colours and contrasts that fill her fashion shots enable her to advocate femininity and portray her subjects through a simple, creative, and powerful approach.
Her international collaborations offer her the possibility of working with prestigious models, agencies, and publications such as New African Woman magazine.
