Norwegian fashion photographer Sølve Sundsbø is no stranger to pushing boundaries. He was one of the lead contributors to The Impossible Image, a glossy photo book published by Phaidon three years ago that showcased digital manipulation in fashion photography. Appearing with work by the expected blockbuster names such as Nick Knight (who was one of the editors), David LaChapelle, Mario Testino, Inez Laamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin, Sundsbø's photos revealed hyper-real, slick worlds with perfect, airbrushed models that seemed to spring not from a computer but from an imagination running riot. Then last year his simple black-and-white image for Yves Saint Laurent became the first ad campaign to show a full frontal male nude in the US and in Europe.
"I don't set out to break boundaries," he explains, "but I'm incredibly restless. When I've conquered one thing, I could do it again, but it's not exciting. That's why I'm drawn to fashion--it's an industry that continually changes."
Sundsbø's international client list includes not only Yves Saint Laurent but Bally, Emporio Armani, Gucci and John Galliano. He's come along way from studying history at Oslo University. In his early twenties, Sundsbø started to take reportage and action photos of his friends skiing and clubbing and realized that he wanted to pursue photography seriously. He moved to London, went to the reputable London College of Printing and entered a fresh new fashion scene where the likes of photographer Phil Poynter and stylist Katie Grand were forging a new fashion style through the then fledgling British magazine Dazed and Confused.
A decade on and Sundsbø's name is now mentioned in the same breath as Nick Knight, his former mentor. Like Knight, Sundsbø is seen as in the vanguard of digital technologies -- the main reason he was picked to shoot the current first-ever global-wide Nike campaign. His images strike a chord with a younger generation brought up on computer games, Special FX and high-end graphics, as well as a 30-something crowd who are weary of the gritty snapshot esthetic endlessly replayed in the fashion press.
"He always makes the models in his photos look very powerful and in control, says Simon Robins, fashion director of Pop magazine, who first commissioned Sundsbø after seeing his portfolio of portraits. "They have a strong appeal which, when I first saw his work, was at odds with the fashion photography around."
He's also enjoyed more than his fair share of the headlines. The YSL ad raised an eyebrow or two, but largely critics were complimentary and the column inches flowed. Earlier this year, he shot classical singer Charlotte Church as a stunning high class vamp for the cover of The Face. It marked the end of an ordinary girl next door, turning her into a credible icon for an image-conscious teen consumer market.
"He's accelerated at a fast rate," says Nick Knight. "I can always tell which of the assistants are going to do well because they have drive. Add to that the fact that Sølve loves all things modern. He's excited by the future. New technologies have entirely changed the photographic landscape and he's someone who is embracing these different directions."
His three-year stint as Knight's assistant after he left college taught him his most invaluable lessons to date. He credits working for Knight as one of his biggest breaks. "It's extremely fruitful for many of those who work with Nick because you've been through such a variation of techniques and emotions," he explains. "You work at an extremely high tempo with someone who's already learned how to take pressure. He let me in on the highs and the lows. It was a roller coaster ride and very hard work, but most of the problems that I face now I've already dealt with as an assistant. The most important lesson that he taught me was that you should be able to carve out a square foot around you and create great pictures from that space all day."
Sundsbø has been called "the new Nick Knight," a label which though flattering, he hopes will soon wear off. "It's a compliment to be compared with someone who's made such an impact and is in photography for the long haul," he says, "but I don't aspire to be him. I hope that in a few years' time, people will say that I've developed my own thing. I want to be the new me!"
Working on Nike's world-wide campaign that hit US billboards at the end of July will certainly help. Nike's US art director Storm Tharpe, Todd Waterburry from ad agency Wieden and Kennedy, together with Markus Kierzstan, who runs MP Creative in New York, selected Sundsbø on the strength of his track record in digital photography and his fashion sense. The campaign's message had to be strong enough to create impact across the States, Asia Pacific and Europe. Based on the theme of movement, a selection of athletes were shot - no mean feat as they were all world-renowned 'A' listers, from sprinters to basketball players.
"Sølve was the only photographer who could do this work because the campaign could not have been done in camera," Kierzstan says. "You're looking at following around top athletes. To shoot them, we hired central studios in Atlanta, Miami, New York and London in order to fit into their schedules -- whether they were in training or competing. It was a case of getting each of them in the studio and shooting against a white backdrop and lighting." The results show each athlete airborne, courtesy of an invisible trampoline, as if they are literally flying across frontiers. The hyper-real backgrounds were entirely generated by computer operators at Metro Imaging in London and were loosely based around fine artist Richard Misrach's well-known skyscapes shot in the desert. Sundsbø doesn't work directly on digital manipulation, but he's involved as the director from start to finish.
