Fashion Book: Samantha Casolari

For this installment of “Fashion Book,” Whitewall presents photographs by Samantha Casolari.

Casolari, a self-taught photographer, first fell in love with photography while living in Paris where she discovered Henri Cartier-Bresson. Although it is hard to find a visual reference to this early inspiration, Casolari’s images are after a human pursuit. Casolari began her career in fashion photography by covering backstage at fashion shows for several magazines such as Dossier and T Magazine. 

Casolari’s images mix fashion, portraiture, and landscape. Flashes of color and light create a dream-like world, referencing a time where in-camera effects were the creative medium of the photographer. The combination of location, clothes, light, and color are all backdrops to the subjects she photographs, acting as additional information in an attempt to reveal something mystical, a hidden beauty.

Greatly inspired by music, her subjects are often musicians, other personalities, or “real people.” It is evident that her images are not just about clothes, rather, they are about the world around us.

Originally from Italy, Casolari grew up in Paris and is now based in New York. She was named Breakout Fashion Photographer of the year by PDN in 2012.