When was the last time you attended a fashion shoot?
For hundreds of people crowded around Melbourne Central’s Shot Tower to watch the live Melbourne Fashion On Location shoot, the answer to that question is, ‘last Wednesday’.
Over three hundred observers looked on as acclaimed fashion photographer Christian Blanchard and his cast did what they do best.
The event was held free of charge for the public as a part of the L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival (LMFF).
On Location shoot stylist Philip Boon said all of the designs worn by each of the four models during the shoot were sold at stores within the centre, which is one of the Festival’s platinum partners.
Brands included Lacoste, Scanlan and Theodore and Nine West.
The inspiration for the shoot was high-end European fashion, Christian Blanchard said.
“Some of the brands researched were Viktor & Rolf [and] Givenchy.”
Although the shoot comprised of four separate shots, Blanchard completed it within one-and-a half hours.
“We’re only doing one hour, and we’re doing four shots… which normally you would do in about one day’s work,” said event producer Dean Drieberg.
Blanchard and Drieberg adapted the high-end European fashion research that had inspired the shoot towards a more grounded, relevant sort of execution for Melbourne Central.
“A live shoot is very different from what you would do in a studio out on location,” said Drieberg.
“We’ve got a lot of theatre involved with our aerial performers. We’ve got a DJ, we’ve got a host, so it’ll keep it interesting for the audience.”
A street wear-themed, smaller-scale live On Location shoot at the Two Blocks Festival at Melbourne Central in 2009 provided the foundations for this year’s event.
“It drew the biggest crowd. Everyone loved it. We got such a good response from it we thought, ‘let’s do it again’”. “This time we thought we’d so do something a bit more fancy…”
National Institute of Circus Arts (NICA) alumni Chiara Boardman, 23, and Billie Wilson-Coffey, 21, were excited to be performing a four-and-a-half minute aerial show to open the shoot.
Both specialized on an apparatus known as the tissue- on which they performed for the shoot- while studying at NICA.
“We have to hang off 52 metres of hanging rope and then our equipment. It makes us spin a little more than we normally would… it just adds a bit of a different dimension that we’re not used to,” said Boardman.
Not that the audience was able to tell.
As the performers tumbled from the apparatus with nothing other than the tissue supporting them, wrapped around their feet, the audience gasped.
Footage from the On Location shoot, including shots taken by Christian Blanchard on set, are available on the L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival blog, in addition to the LMFF Twitter and Facebook pages.
Further samples of Blanchard’s work can be found on his website.
Chiara and Billie are freelance artists working and living in Melbourne. An ensemble performance showcasing the talents of current NICA students, entitled Veritas, also opens tonight (23/2).
A Video blog and Poll related to this event can also be found on new fashion blog More than it Seams. Emma Dilemma is contributing to and building this blog, along with Michelle Teseriak and Emily Deacon, as part of Monash University's Online Journalism initiative.
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