“The character is already there”: Andrea Artemisio builds narrative, attitude and tone in his photographs

Being able to see details in photography such as tone of voice, overarching narrative and, as he’s already mentioned, a certain “attitude”, is Andrea’s key talent as a photographer. His work, no matter the client or subject, is always distinctly his. He always shoots in studio, for instance, usually on a background that, at its lightest is an off white, and at its darkest a light grey. The differentiation between his series can be spotted in the introduction of new props and contemporary costume. He’s not a photographer who waits patiently for a photograph to form in front of him; Andrea orchestrates exactly what Andrea wants. It’s meant that, despite his young age, he’s already shot for the likes of Alla Carta, Vogue Italia and Dazed, and sits alongside David Lane, Jack Davison and Bobby Doherty on Mini Title’s roster.

Spending time with photographers and their faithful army of stylists, make-up artists, lighting technicians and retouchers allowed Andrea to define his aesthetic. “One of the first and most important shoots was ten years ago while I was still working as an assistant,” he recalls. “During that afternoon I found the light scheme that worked for me, and which I have used and readjusted over the years. It was the first step in defining my aesthetic.”

Andrea’s approach to lighting, and this moment he discovered it, is representative of the photographer’s “aim for a contemporary aesthetic” coupled with the fact that his main influences “come from classical photography, the work in grey studios of photographers such as Irving Penn and Avedon,” he says. In turn, the lighting is bright, clean and provides no distraction from the subjects in the foreground, akin to Richard Avedon’s iconic images of Twiggy, Kate Moss and Marilyn Monroe. “I was interested in tapping into what is seen today as ‘classical’ or the canon in photography, and transporting this into a more current way of seeing, applying it to everyday views and moving from a familiarity I had with film into digital.”

This is where Andrea differs from other contemporary photographers. Where many brands seek to feature “real” people in campaigns and transform them into something new, he instead keeps them as is. If he is shooting something or someone relatively “famous” he won’t dress it down to appear approachable; instead he’ll dial up the theatrics. On set, his approach differs too, purposefully creating a unique atmosphere. “I barely talk with my subjects,” he says, “which is probably the opposite of what usually happens on set whereby photographers communicate with subjects and direct them.”

It’s not that Andrea is purposefully mean or cold towards subjects, he just doesn’t want to ruin an ambience with pleasantries. It’s a decision which has led to a stylistic tendency of Andrea’s, that of never having subjects looking into the camera. “I’ll ask someone else who’s on set that day to talk to them, to have the small talk, so they remain more themselves instead of posing for me or for the camera. I try to have more distance to get closer,” he explains. “Subjects might not always be comfortable, they probably get nervous and annoyed by not knowing exactly how to pose or what to do, especially the professional ones. I probably don’t make them feel at ease but this allows me to see an unprepared, spontaneous side of the person that would otherwise remain hidden.” This approach makes reasonable sense when you see Andrea’s work and, after all, he sees photography as a job, not a jolly.

In having such a wealth of knowledge about photography at such a young age, as well as approaching the medium with an alternative attitude to many of his contemporaries, Andrea is forging his own path, which is making him a fascinating practitioner to watch blossom. In being so true to himself and so confident (on asking the photographer how he would describe his work as a whole, he bravely answers with just one word “hyperreal”), looking towards the rest of 2019 he wants to step up a gear: “This year I would like to use the very small power I have as a professional photographer to portray artists I hold in high esteem, and who have inspired me over the past few years. I don’t know yet if I can make it, but two of these are Enzo Mari and Aki Kaurismaki.”

It’s exciting to hear that despite having the attention of up-and-coming fashion brands, as well as independent and staple publications turning to him, Andrea’s love of photography isn’t motivated by working with bigger clients or on bigger productions. Instead, Andrea wants to honour the heroes that got him into photography in the first place. Maybe a shoot with Wolfgang Tillmans is on the cards?