It was fun leaving grey Paree to set off, about 20 hours later, for Arizona. We decided to spend our Christmas vacation there. On top of that, we had a project for Italian Glamour. The desert heat would be perfect for the light outfits the magazine put together for the shoot.
When Scott came to get me at the airport, he said to me, “Ummm Garance…. I rented a car…. They, uhhh, gave me a rather embarrassing car. You’ll see”
“Mais nooooooon…” I said to him when I saw the giant white tank of a thing they gave us. And then I see Scott in the driver’s seat and we just start cracking up. And of course, in the back, three enormous suitcases filled with all the very teenage outfits sent by Glamour.
(I’m just kidding. Nope. Not this one, though I kinda wish it were!)
No worries though, our spacecar ran just fine. We’re rolling on through the desert trying not to scare the bobcats, listening to old American standards. Cut to road trip montage, hand out the window, life is a highway… You see what I’m saying.
So after a few days of driving around drinking frozen margaritas freshly squeezed fruit juice, we got to work. We wanted it to be simple and light as that’s how we usually work. No big team, a lot of direct input with the models, and clothes that fit with their personalities.
This was one of my first castings. The girls were quite young and we figured out quickly that we had to direct them to help them get past their nerves. And we had to be fast. We talked to them for a second, told them to move a little, and then a quick yes or no. I felt myself growing bangs, very Devil Wears Prada. The fashion world, it sure can be a cruel one!
Can you imagine two seconds, taking that young girl’s place who understands just as fast as we do that it’s just not going to happen? Some of them trembling… That being said, there were the others, also quite young, who came in relaxed as ever and cracked us up.
Then off to the fitting. Let them try on a few things and see what works best. And it’s here where I learned the most. I had pre-picked out some of the outfits and I learned very quickly that was not a good idea. A piece of clothing is meant to live on someone. We had to completely put together a whole new feeling, take out some of the unneeded accessories that were getting in the way, run over to American Apparel to get everything we were missing, then grab some stuff from my suitcases and even from the models’ closets… And after all that, it’s there I see it. It all comes together, despite the imposed theme, and because I hadn’t picked the outfits beforehand. I see an outfit here that has taken on life, then put on a few final touches. It’s like perfecting a recipe in the kitchen. Just a pinch of this, a pinch of that…
Okay… Ummm.. Actually, no idea what I meant by that. Perfecting a recipe? A pinch of what who?
And then finally to the shoot. We piled into the car, put on some background music and headed out to a few places we had scouted out earlier. Scott was making a whole bunch of jokes in American. I maybe understood…. half of them. I liked feeling a little detached, letting my hair in the wind, watching the scenery fly by and letting myself be filled with this beautiful light. And it was hilarious to be in this giant white car full of laughing models… A few readjustments to the outfits later and I take a few shots.
Real work here, a great memory. And it all came back, arriving at the airport in Milan this last time, opening up Glamour and coming across the series of photos, I must say, it all made me quite happy. On top of that, I was credited as the fashion editor! Hahahaha! I just like showing off!! Bisou!
Translation : Tim Padraic Sullivan
