Modern Physics, Beautiful Fun

Patrick Demarchelier is fun. The fact that he is a fashion photographer who photographs beautiful women and celebrities is an added attraction. An example is the photo of a boy on crutches and a leg in a cast, his own son Arthur. The boy is grinning, in a defiant stance. Both father and son are playing around; the photograph is called "Another Demarchelier."

Born near Paris, Demarchelier grew up in Le Havre, two cities markedly different from sunny Provence, which seems to inspire the nature of his photographs. The mood is bright and sunny-though the light is always diffused, never harsh. We are far from the brooding and overbearing photographs of Helmut Newton, who certainly does not lack humor. Demarchelier's sense of humor is more explosive, earthy and a permanent state.

Demarchelier began his photographic career on the lowest rung: retouching I.D. photographs, followed by mass-volume commercial printing. The images of Avedon, Irving Penn, David Bailey and Hiro inspired him to take up the challenge of fashion photography-but before he could do that he was the photographer for a movie magazine to augment his stipend sold soap bars. The film magazine went out of business, but he got the chance to be the photographer in a school for fashion models. Leafing through fashion magazines, he learned how to make the models pose. The ascent was laborious, but quick. This reflects his his philosophy: "I don't like to wait too long for results." Despite his carefree approach, he was a serious professional-dynamic and prolific-qualities that he admired in the most accomplished photographers and which are the mark of the best artists.

Soon he was sailing through spreads and covers for European magazines: the work grew in volume and quality with steady assertiveness. It is no surprise that, barely 30 years old, he landed in Manhattan, the ultimate for any ambitious person. The European experience taught him to work with precision and speed, key repuisites to swift notoriety. He did not have much talent for communication-not knowing a word of English-but his European work already impressive and art directors did not care about verbal skills. Since the last ten years he has been a dominating force in an extremely competitive field. Demarchelier is ephemeral and chaotic, which is good, since in about the same period chaos has emerged as a science, one of the most important subjects of contemporary physics. He photographs in Paris, Milan, and anywhere in the US, Africa, or some blissful island. With such settings and some of the sexiest women in the world, how can one miss? How many can accomplish this? The answer could be given by the models, armed with "books" and portfolios in line at his door. Demarchelier never says "No," he smiles politely and goes on to the next booking.

It has been said that at the beginning, several art directors found his photographs "too European." He dismissed this categorization as pointless: "Photography has no frontiers. Whether you are American or what else, everybody finds in photography what he likes to find. We do not explain photographs: people find in them what they like to find." Similarly, when asked whether there is a "Demarchelier style" he seemed ambiguous, saying: "I do very different things, varied and often new. In the studio and outdoors, portraits, nudes, animals, nature, this is what I like most. I'm always looking for change, this cannot be called a very defined style. Photography is not a style, maybe change is the only style."