I have to confess when I heard the name 02gb it unfortunately didn’t ring any bells. However this photographic duo, made up of Max von Gumppenburg & Patrick Bienert, is big fish on the German fashion scene. After looking through their extensive & striking portfolio, this comes as no surprise; they’ve worked for the likes of Hussein Chalayan, Kostas Murkudis, and shot numerous times for Vogue.
Their look book for couture master Valentino that we were seduced by however. In this case, seduction definitely feels like the right word. The sensual depth & mystery of the great works of the renaissance giants really has been channelled into their compositions for the spring/summer 2014 look book.
Using classic visual motifs derived from the renaissance masters: fruit to magical lakeside landscapes painted onto giant swathes of fabric, and the result is wonderfully beguiling. Classical oval-shaped faces, columned architectural structures & animals prowling the jungle all feature in the look book.
The lack of physical distance between the foreground , background and middle ground of the images lends to a painterly effect , coupled with a lower contrast than most popular fashion images. This not only serves to immerse the viewer into the world of Valentino Haute Couture but also perpetuates mystic, hinting to a classic narrative.
Max and Patrick use an amazing spectrum of rich differing hues and tones as effectively as I’ve ever seen it used to highlight points of brightness.
Now that max and Patrick have finally blown us all away, I’m sure that they’re legacy doesn’t end here. We will be seeing more of they’re work and we can’t wait!
Alexandra Mantoura
