Dear Shaded Viewers,
There's something infectious about Julien Claessens' work. His photographs lure you in and seduce you, creating a web of ambiguities and doubts that is both complex and beautiful. Whether he shoots a private portrait, a commercial image or a backstage view, the Frenchman creates an evocative world going beneath the surface. His name came to prominence this year when Assouline published "The Other Side of the Picture", the fruit of his collaboration with Belgian designer Olivier Theyskens. Claessens gave us a unique insight into Olivier's career and shows, focusing on what happened behind the scenes, capturing moments that were both rare and unexpected. In his personal work, Claessens also tries to reveal that hidden part we all share. He's currently having a solo exhibition at "Le Salon d'Art" in Brussels and took me there for a viewing. The hyptonic feel of his images grows on you and you're under his spell without even knowing it. In this exclusive interview, he talks about how the exhibition happened, the sources of his inspiration and what he's looking for in a picture.
How did your last show come about?
It was my former teacher at La Cambre, Christian Carez, who was contacted by Jean Marchetti, the gallery owner. Marchetti was looking for people to exhibit and called me asking if I was interested in doing a show. I agreed, but told him I didn't have enough money at that time to produce images. I had seven large prints from a previous show at Le R