The “credits” for the portrait I took of fabio and that was published on the recent issue of vanity fair out now is far too generous, but in its own way it has its sense: “photo settimio benedusi” is written at the beginning of the nice article, and it looks like I take pictures of him since he was a little boy in his mother erminia’s arms and he was a few months old. It is probably true, I existed already and I was photographing, even though I was unaware…
This portrait and the cover of interni always with photographs done by me (but here we balance vaity fair, without crediting: grrrr…) they persuade me to do a “best of” with all the portraits and jobs done with and for fabio in all these years that we have known each other.
All images can be clicked to enlarge.
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This was the first photograph I took of fabio, when we met. The length of the hair and the fact that I took the photograph with an optical bench and a 10×12 polaroid can show that a few years have gone by… I took this one in the bohemian/new yorker loft where he used to live. There were no walls, and everything was shared:
Always from those times this photograph taken outside the famous loft. It goes without saying that I had in mind the renowned image of james dean. besides fabio:
Two portraits with his friend stefano fontana, in the bisazza showroom:
One of the first experiments both on nudity as well as doubles, clearly inspired by alighiero boetti:
In a period between the mystical and the desperate fabio became an armchair which he called S.O.S. which is the acronym of the notorious cry for help (save our souls) as well as sofa of solitude. These where hard times for him:
The attempt to photograph his pretty little face together with the skull ring with which he is never without:
Years ago he even engaged with theatre, interpreting none other than “waiting for godot”. Here with his friend saturnino:
Still with his long hair for the cover of interni:
At the time of creating the chair “him&her”:
The first big retrospectiveat the rotonda della besana, sitting on a HER:
The advertising campaign for the same chairs, produced by casamania:
Not only I photograph him, but I support him to take photographs matrix style:
I took the opportunity during the last salone to shoot the cover for urban, in which he became director for one issue. The illustration is by emiliano ponzi:
During the same period with his friend beppe finessi for the cover of juliet (I always tell him: you always fool yourself by thinking you are federico fellini, then surely beppe is your ennio flaniano):
His second big show, last year at the triennale. The massive rose in construction, with the author of all the music for the installation, giuliano sangiorgi:
This winter photographed at the cimitero monumentale of milan for the magazine panorama first:
The vanity fair page out now, with my portrait and all the rest that were done (by me!) when he was a few months old:
The cover, and the relative pages of the magazine interni, out now:
The original version of the shoot done for NEMO, the new piece made for driade:
So here, this is the side where the “best of” the “professional” course done so far with fabio.
Then there is the friendship, then there is the affection. Then there is the being brothers…
In these years we have done many things together: we have laughed (a lot), we have done fuck all, we went to the cinema (once we went to see three movies in one day!), we have fantasized, we have dreamt, we have done a million projects, we have gotten drunk… in short we have lived.
I think I know him very well:
Fabio is curious; fabio is sympathetic; fabio is a ball breaker full of himself; fabio is extremely generous; fabio is kind; fabio has many friends; fabio has a candle that shines on him and heats him up even when it burns; fabio walks serene between green grass and blue skies; fabio does very little (in all the jobs that we have done together I have always had complete creative autonomy), but he is capable of incredible magic, he is able to make his presence the detonator for things to happen; fabio could be the classic architect with much smoke and no fire, but his smoke makes the fire more raging; fabio is always focused; fabio had a loving mother that made me eat eggplant at his house; fabio is completely uninterested in money; fabio is honest; fabio is egocentric; fabio is elegant; even when he dresses up like a drug dealer; fabio hates garlic and onion; fabio appreciates good food…….
This and much more is fabio novembre.
For me, today, simply a friend.
Fabio, fuck you, I love you!
Here, me and him photographed by toni thorimbert:
