Its keep coming back, resurfacing from the "pre digital age".
Here is one of my best editorials ever! a very well put together fashion Sports Wear spread for the
"Independent on Sunday" Magazine. The date is 7 September 1996, the place is London UK at the WORX Day light Studio in Old Street. Everything was working right that day.. It was Jo Adams, that called me and wanted to discuss a sports wear fashion spread for the Sunday Magazine. She had seen a Sports wear spread that I had shot for the British Edition of Health&Fitness and she had wanted to repeat the idea and take it a step forward. The idea was a lot to do with the lighting involving water. I admit it did look a whole lot complicated than it actually was. It was even silly simple, yet it did add another wonderful dimension to a story that had all the potential to be dead boring.. I mean what could you possibly do with a model a few minimal sports wear items and a big white daylight studio..? I loved Jo's enthusiasm and she had dedicated herself to get the best she could in terms of studio, hair and make up and a model. "Elite Premier" supplied the model Eva and she was perfect. Jo Karsberg did the make up and Paul Mathews the hair. They were all noting less then excellent. I so love it when the whole team is just doing it together the whole way from A to Z and it's all
right on.I hope to be able to pull the pictures out from the Independent archives.
The point of this post starts actually way back. I was getting ready to leave London for many reasons, one of them is a story very similar to this. and that I believe will be the subject of my next post, sort of going back in time:) I was very frustrated at the time, 100s of times my ideas were stolen, copied and what not..
But that last one in London was so very blunt, well under the belt and extremely disrespectful. I could not get over this one, it hit me hard right in my essence. I decided to move to the apple. Just like this. if the big boys copies my ideas is such an obvious manner, I might as well go there and show them closer how to shoot. Just before leaving Paris (which is the biggest mistake I have ever made!) I met with the head of Conde Nast Paris at the time. Fiona Loved my work and she strongly advised me to get to NYC and when I am there or ready to get there for certain to let her know and she would fix me an appointment with John H. Then, the Art Director of American Vogue. She told me that this is my shot and I should focus on that only.
So, I called Fiona from London Heathrow and told her that I am just about to catch a flight to NYC. I was excited to hear her say that I will be well taken care of out there. I arrived straight from the airport to the art department office at American Vogue and there was a young associate art director, sorry but I can't recall the name. She through at me a list of event that we are going to attend together. Wow, I thought to myself.. this is it. I'm inn! I arrived home. We had a spin around town in a company car and I remember having a blast. In between all that it had "licked" to me that John likes my approach and style, yet he can not start me right at the top, I might start with a portrait with Vogue but I will have to shoot some fashion
for one the other Conde Nast magazines. I was advised to call Carla F. the picture editor of Mademoiselle Magazine and talk to her some ideas that I might want to shoot for her. So I did and I found myself in front of Carla the same very day that I called. Right at the start Carla had open her drawer and pulled out The Independent on Sunday with that sports wear spread that I was responsible for.
She looked through it once twice and the it came.. "So Roli, How did you do that?" I remember how I froze up. Carla did not wait much longer before striking with the same question the second time. I was very uncomfortable and ran the "collapse of Vogue and Roli's wonderful relationship" scene in my mind. I replied to Carla the same way 3-4 times: "well, the only way for you to find out is to hire me to shoot one for you. Some how with greater pressure and greater promises, I gave Carla the big secret and felt so very wrong about it, in fact, until this very day. I was not all surprised to open American Vogue a couple of months later to see my brain sweat all over 12 pages spread with the promising Steven M under it. Well this is one way to get a good idea and get paid well. Oh ya, I forgot to mention, but I did get from Carla a bone. I shot a humiliating "mini fashion story" for Mademoiselle. It was so badly casted and styled. In my memory the worse editorial put together I ever had to deal with. It is unfortunate that someone else can take my ideas that do suit my style and instead place me on a job that is far from my style as it could possibly be. Not to mention that my second encounter with another Magazine of this Publications called me up to a meeting short while after. I walked into the Art Department of Glamor to meet 3 lovely ladies. As far a I remember, the Fashion Director, the Creative director and the Managing editor. They set me down and talked a good pay for 3 stories that I would shoot for them in Miami. Sounds good so far, no? The only thing I will have to do to actually get the job, they added, was to JUST LOSE MY EDGE. Oh man, until today I don't know how to do that and more so WHY?
I am sure that if I'd known how to lose my edge I would have done just that.
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