John Malkovich’s Smirk
Somber, thoughtful, atmospheric is the work Anne Piqué creates. The images are connected with the invisible thread of Anne's personal view of the subject and the narrative. The photographs welcome to the world in which emotion engulfs the story but yet is restrained, never crossing the boundary to become overwhelming.
Nature is an additional connector, the setting that transforms to be a protagonist with its own mood emphasizing the story's line. Can photography impact and change the well-established values? What influences the artist’s work? How a set engagement impedes working on a project with John Malkovich? Read on.
Anne Piqué is a French fashion photographer living and creating in Paris. She worked with clients like Bon Parfumeur, Les Galeries Lafayette, Longchamp, and others. “The two forces that make me want to pursue photography are curiosity and frustration,” Anne explains. We dwell on how place and time affect the photographer’s aesthetic, the main drives that push Anne to create, and the main themes in her work as designing a timeless set, minimizing makeup, and using nature as a canvas. The memories of childhood stories about the Asaro Mudmen and the Chambri tribe, which Anne’s father, a cameraman for Jacques-Yves Cousteau, told, emerge and add some nostalgia to our chat.
‘This is the tricky thing in fashion photography; sometimes aesthetics tends to overshadow the content and meaning of the work and then becomes some sort of a pastiche of someone else’s style and personal preferences.’
I Am
Hi Anne, so happy to have you in our magazine! What was the main driving force for you to start photographing and not stopping until this day?
Thank you for having me! I think the two forces that make me want to pursue photography are curiosity and frustration. Curiosity, because I started fashion photography with almost no references in this particular field of art, and as a result, my whole understanding of photography back then was based on what I knew, which means almost nothing. For me, photography keeps getting interesting and challenging years after years. There are still so many things to do and explore. Frustration, because I only find the strength to act and create personal projects when I’m deeply unsatisfied with my work. I need that little push, otherwise I’ll just wait for it to happen.
How do you think society, the language, or the country one lives in, in your case Paris, affects a photographer's aesthetics?
If humans are shaped, to an extent, by our environment, then it’s only natural that our work is influenced by it as well. It’s a dialogue. As an artist, you feed on your environment, but ultimately you have to give it back somehow. If you want to make the conversation interesting, there’s no need to lie or talk about something you don’t know.
This is the tricky thing in fashion photography; sometimes aesthetics tends to overshadow the content and meaning of the work and then becomes some sort of a pastiche of someone else’s style and personal preferences to the point where there’s no real link between the content and the visual aspect.
To be honest, I’m not quite sure how Paris has an influence on my aesthetics, but when I went to China last year, I remember being mesmerised by the light. Because of the smog, even with a clear blue sky, the light was very diffuse and soft. Maybe I only seek quietness and an uncluttered environment because of how tiring Paris can be?
Fashion Design
You choose to study fashion design. How do you think this sphere helps you with fashion shoots?
Well, that’s a good question… to be honest, I didn’t know the difference between appreciating fashion and making actual clothes. I didn’t stay very long at that school, and I started taking photography more seriously after that. Now, I just love being able to work with a stylist who shares the same taste and vision for clothes.
‘My favourite story was about the Asaro Mudmen. They said they used to go to their enemies’ villages masked with mud and spread terror amongst the villagers who thought spirits were attacking them.’
Jacques-Yves Cousteau
In an interview for Tsuki, you mention that your dad was a cameraman for Jacques-Yves Cousteau. Could you share one of the most powerful memories connected to the stories he probably shared with you about the expeditions?
My dad died when I was a kid, so all the stories that I heard about the expeditions were from my mom’s. Although, I do remember this particular one about his expedition to Papua New Guinea in 1989; Jacques-Yves Cousteau along with his son, Jean Michel, organized a major expedition with two ships: the famous Calypso, which carried the scientific and diving team that were going to explore the offshore islands, and the Alcyone that sailed up the Sepik River, which accompanied the land expedition in Papua New Guinea highlands. My dad was with the second team; they documented the rituals of different tribesmen, such as the Chambri tribe known for their scarification that resembles crocodile’s scales.
But my favourite story was about the Asaro Mudmen. They said they used to go to their enemies’ villages masked with mud and spread terror amongst the villagers who thought spirits were attacking them. They would then come back home victorious and without a scratch. Scare tactics have no borders!
Why do you think this story impressed you?
I think he probably did everything that any young adventurous child would want to do, like tasting honeypot ants, laying in the grass for hours, observing the world from a 10m turbosail, and also catching malaria!
‘I love making up things. I’m not really interested in showing the reality that I live in. For me, photography is a way of creating and giving shape to my own imaginary narrative, where the subject is the main character.’
Themes
In both the commercial projects and your personal work, themes like discovering personality, nature, animals come as a linking thread. In personal photography, people you present, appear closer to the documentary genre as compared with fashion; however, in both genres, the subjects (you choose to portray) have a very distinct story, whether a real or a staged one. What interests you the most in creating a narrative or in choosing a character?
I love making up things. I’m not really interested in showing the reality that I live in. For me, photography is a way of creating and giving shape to my own imaginary narrative, where the subject is the main character. There’s a before and an after. It’s like watching time slowly flowing through your eyes. I want people to enter this alternate narrative and feel emotionally engaged. Most of my models have little to no makeup, wear non-extravagant garments, and are evolving in an environment devoid of anything that would give a hint about the country or period of time. I hope it makes it easier for the viewer to connect to the subject’s emotional state rather than his supposed identity. That’s also the reason why I love working so much with nature as a canvas.
Change
Photography and contemporary art today have an added layer, which is an absolute drive towards adding an impactful idea. The main purpose usually is to contribute to an ongoing conversation and move the dialogue forward. How do you think photography affects attitudes, behaviors leading to expanded acceptance and diversity?
I think that photography and visual arts, in general, have a great power to engage directly with their viewer in a non-confrontational way. It’s easier to feel compassion and acceptance towards images such as photography and movies because of their evocative nature. It’s a great medium to treat delicate matters.
A Memory
What was the hardest project you worked on? What was the most difficult thing to achieve during the shoot?
A few years ago, I was confirmed on a commercial job that was not even well paid, and not necessarily good for exposure. Two weeks before the job, an art director with whom I became friends with asked me if I was available to shoot John Malkovich. I was ecstatic! So I begged my agency to cancel the other job; they had plenty of time to find another photographer for this project.
All I remember after that is going VERY reluctantly on that commercial job, and the whole time while I was shooting, I imagined John Malkovich smirking at me and lecturing me for being such an idiot.
Upcoming Projects
What are your plans for this year? What are you working on right now?
Making more projects close to my heart and less random editorials that I regret doing later. I’m working on a very personal project right now that is not really related to fashion, and I hope I will be able to make an exhibition out of it. Also, I’ll try my best to stop excessive contemplation; as William Shakespeare beautifully said:
‘the native hue of resolution Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought’. Stop thinking; start acting!
