Marseille-born Stephane Gallois is less an up-and-comer than a late bloomer, a lifelong photography devotee who "didn't want to be a 'real' photographer until lately." The son of an established photography talent, Gallois claims he was already doing his first field reporting at age seven, developing his own film by 10, and brought a camera along on his first date. "I did long studies in history of art, history of photography and then art school -- it took me a while to accept my dad's legacy!"
When he did take up the mantle, projects for the likes of Lanvin, Vogue, and H&M soon found him. His images -- which he elegantly describes as "a pictorial, easy-going, preppy, retro aesthetic with a touch of anxiety and a dash of desperate amusement" -- have a strong commercial appeal, conventionally beautiful with a bit of rock n' roll edge.
No surprise, then, that music is what first sparked Gallois' interest in the fashion world. "I'm still judging a record by its cover and a band by its shoes," he laughs. "I'm also obsessed by the idea of collection, archives, lists and so on. That's why season after season I'm so proud of all the look books I'm shooting with Alber Elbaz for Lanvin."
Illustrious clientele and natural artistic ability aside, Gallois claims if he weren't working in fashion he "would probably be the owner of a wonderful store in Stockholm in Berlin, selling everything I love the most: 'Books, Bread, and Bicycles.' I already had several lives, so who knows?"
