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I passed from the Department Giorgio Armani garment Spain this interview they have done to the photographer Bruce Weber for being and author of his new perfume campaign Acqua di Gio Essenza that I have presented in the previous post. And I found it very interesting as reflections of this great photographer's why I transcribe!

Bruce Weber, He is well known for its shootings moda and his highly naturalistic pictures of idyllic youth. Water is often part of their job ¿is an important component for you?

I have always felt the freedom that inspires the sea. I grew up in a small town in the central region of the US that had no ocean, obviously; It has many lakes, but no ocean. So water has become synonymous with escape from it all, to travel and get back to nature. Using much the element of water in my photos, either wet or persons or swimming bath or shower… Wet skin is a fantastic theme in photography. As for the models I like to photograph young people and I love to photograph really old people. What I seek above all is beauty.

¿It is true that beauty is young?

Not necessarily. You know, I have met people throughout my life that was much older than me but his spirit was much younger. Por ejemplo, I met the poet Allen Ginsberg, and was so open and so free expression as a person in his poetry. In my opinion, that is where the beauty truly lies.. I think every day brings a different experience and we have to take it personally, something that can be shared.

His photographs also tell a story. He is a photographer and a story writer who gets involved in them…

It's like that old song. Every picture tells a story. Sometimes the history you've invented and sometimes that history is happening right under your nose. But history is what all and have to have eyes open so you can see and tell.

¿What has been your source of inspiration for the Acqua di Gi campaigno?

I thought a lot about Mr.. Armani. I grew up with your photos, with his clothes, with their fragrances, I've always admired much. Sometimes it was just a portrait of a person but felt that that person had a story. I wanted to explore this field in a more emotional way, in the sense of detail, generosity… I will explain what I mean. Years ago I went to a fashion show of Armani in Milan. Later I was invited to a party at a very old house. As he climbed a monumental staircase I could see people dressed in costumes of the eighteenth century welcoming us and carrying candles. The light was amazing and Dining, in each of the chairs he had a small cushion he had designed himself Sr. Armani. That's where this was going: this kind of hospitality, giving people so much pleasure and that incredible sense of delicacy.

¿This is one of the characteristic qualities of the Armani house.?

Undoubtedly yes and especially one of the qualities of Mr. Armani. It has always been very passionate about his work and life; It has a great desire to make beautiful and tough things and share, so I thought about it and the fact that he had a house on an island, I thought of that island and what had brought her the peace and serenity of the place. From there I created a story with Simon Nessman to personify the fragrance.

He has been working with Simon for quite some time…

I know Simon since he was 15 años. When he knew had just arrived from Vancouver and played rugby and basketball. I made the first photos and from the beginning I liked its sleek sensitivity. It has something very masculine, great spontaneity and a kind of fragility hidden. It shows courage, and it takes a lot of courage to stand in front of the camera, Shyness and understanding. It is not only handsome but has soul and a natural elegance.

In the digital era still work with reel. ¿What is behind this choice?

I do not know if it really is a choice but I have to say I'm old school and I'm happy as well. My grandmother made beautiful pictures and painted and used reel and my uncle also used reel. My father made movies and took pictures: all used reels and raised in that environment. I like the quality they have, when light gives the film and the fact that you can almost touch the photo and the person who is in the photo.

¿What kind of light did you try to capture?

I was not looking for any particular type of light… early morning or evening. I just wanted to feel like Simon and spent the day together. It is not a specific moment, frozen in time, It is more linear narrative, we experience an adventure together, Just the two of us, during the course of a day.

Also you produced the video of the campaign. ¿How did you conceptualize it??

I thought a lot about yoga when I was working on these pictures and how the fragrance connects you to the world around us. I liked how it gave Simon the courage to approach the camera and have no fear in that regard. I thought the water, the nature and stage. It was more about creating a mood or an atmosphere than a serie of sequences itself. Let's say the idea came from there, my imagination took flight: I have a lot of imagination but surely, that's what is expected of me.

¿And how did you work on it??

Again he went out without thinking. I am not one of those people who keep the computer when there is a cloud in the sky. I like the imperfection and mystery, the unexpected –these are topics that both Bergman and Pasolini explored in depth–. I had a great team, I worked with Peter Zuccarini, a master recording underwater, and he has also worked on Pirates of the Caribbean. Here also the point was to capture the subtle nuance and freshness in the world of Armani. I do not focus as if it were a fragrance, but I wanted to go beyond the product. I think I know well enough how to live and work Sr. Armani and that's the experience I wanted to capture in pictures.

You mentioned some of the great directors cine. ¿cinema inspires you?

¡Of course! When I was young every Sunday night my family and I jumped in the car in our small town of Pennsylvania and drove to Pittsburgh. We were going to see foreign films. Many of these films were Italian, that's how I saw The sweet life, Federico Fellini and The Bicycle Thief, Vittorio De Sica. I was fascinated by the magnetic appeal of Anna Magnani on the screen. The top names of Italian neorealism still remain for me my main sources of inspiration, their great actresses, Sophia Loren and Claudia Cardinale to name a few.

¿Hence the use of black and white.?

I was told that's what I wanted Mr.. Armani and I thought well. The choice of black and white was right for the job, para Acqua di Gio Essenza, and more broadly to keep the spirit of Armani. When photos are so very important to be intimate, and black and white is perfect for this.

It also gives Simon a very movie-like quality.…

Sí, actually does. I've heard all kinds of things about Simon. People say it looks like a Greek god. The good thing about Simon is that it has a fragile quality, a bit like Alain Delon in the beginning, It is at this critical point in your life where everything is still possible, but you do not know what to expect future. I think some of the directors I mentioned above would have looked the material and excited that Simon would have work for them. Bueno, at least one of them.

¿who specifically?

I've thought a lot and the answer could be Luchino Visconti.

¿The campaign has a very Italian feeling?

I do not believe it. It is part of a much larger world, even if it brought an “Italian touch” with light and film quality… Again it was not an emulation: the idea was to capture, in my own way, Mediterranean feeling, connection with water, the sea, bodily freedom on the beach… I really love Italy. I also feel the same about France; It is one of those places where you can wander through a town or city and find someone, as a character, that has come from a novel.

we return to the story…

Sí, because that's where it all begins. And Beauty, Simon the beauty of concrete. I know it sounds a little weird, but from experience I think the camera is really human. Some people like it and some people do not. Simon loves the camera. She likes her body, they pose, mentality, so these pictures are also a way to create a record of it, a memory.

¿How?

let me explain. I lived in Paris when I started taking photos. I met all kinds of people, artistas, etc., they wanted to photograph me, I was like the American guy without a hard. I thought it would be nice and it would be nice but what really craved was to be wholehearted photographer and film director. Mine was to be behind the camera. I did not want to be photographed, I wanted to be the one to shoot the camera button… When I came back to the United States, still I remained poor and started photographing rock and roll musicians, poets and people like that. I realized I did not have to be so serious. When I lived in Paris and photographing people my age made me feel very touchy and made me want to give them a memory of being young. This advertising campaign for Acqua di Gio Essenza, It's like a piece of history for Mr.. Armani and Simon.