Bourdin bathroom

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Provocative, obscure and delicious is the work of leading 20th century fashion photographer, Guy Bourdin. This month Somerset House serves 'Guy Bourdin: Image Maker', a mouth watering, amuse-bouche insight into the life and works of the master photographer who famously combined fetishism and fun with fashion.

An extensive career saw the former protégé of Man Ray revolutionise the pages of Vogue Paris from

glossy images of conservative fashion, into dystopian scenes of social change, female liberation and sexuality.      

                                                                                                                  

Bourdin gave fashion a narrative. Every macro molecule of a photo displays a complex scene that explores a bewilderment of darkness, eroticism and tension between the model and various fashion related items. Often the women in these images remain anonymous which adds to the mystery of it all: Who is she? What is she doing?

The intensity of colour in these images replicates the dramatic scenery. Splashes of acidic yellows and electrifying blues ooze with an explosive abundance of sensuality and excitement.

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I left the exhibition in a bubble of Bourdin. The photos spoke to me- they translate the infinite illusion between fantasy and fashion, which is something I orchestrate in what I wear on a daily basis.

A pair of recently purchased, pointy pumps from Cheap Monday sparked a surge of Bourdin into my blood. The instance I put on these blazing orange flats with some lurid yellow tights, I felt as if I was in the shoes of one of Bourdin's mischievous models.

Whether you wear just a pop of colour or an distinct piece of clothing, what you wear should always tell a story of its own.

...M...

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