Sweaty in the sweat shop
Another enjoyable photo session with the Esquire team — I love working with these guys. This one went like this:
(Ring, ring)
Me: Yesss..?
Esquire: Paul, are you free for a shoot?
Me: When?
Esquire: Like erm, tomorrow?
Me: Well, more or less…
So this time we are shooting Malaysian designer Bernard Chandran, either in his studio/sweatshop or his office. Hands up for the sweatshop (me, me, me!!).
I’m already picturing all these Bangladeshi workers in a dark, dingy and rundown shack, chained to their work stations next to blacked out windows, exhausted from their 16-hour shift. Yeah right, dream on — Bernard’s studio turns out to be well lit and clean, and unfortunately there isn’t a Bangladeshi in sight. Bugger, my thought bubble just exploded.
Me: So Lennard (Esquire’s deputy editor), how do you want to shoot this?
Lennard: I leave that totally up to you
Thannnnnnks Len. We only have 30 minutes to do this so think think think!
I look around, my mind dismissing every space available: Nope not there…crap, don’t like that angle…oh God, am I hung over? My brain has stopped.
Then it hit me: when I was at art school, I did a project where I was naked and painted green, standing at an ironing board and ironing shirts which were covered in pink plaster (well it seemed perfectly sensible at the time).
Me: So Bernard, would you mind taking your clothes off?
Bernard: Sure.
CLICK.
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