Rafael Pavarotti and Ib Kamara Team up for Feben
The photographer-stylist power duo have created a series of acidic images for rising designer and Central Saint Martins graduate, Feben.
The photographer-stylist power duo have created a series of acidic images for rising designer and Central Saint Martins graduate, Feben.
After Ib Kamara was appointed editor-in-chief of Dazed in January, the British style bible has experienced a radical overhaul. Kamara's first summer issue was marked by the release of two eccentric, iconic magazine covers that reflected the trying times we found ourselves in; the first cover saw a male model in a full Gucci tracksuit getting vaccinated by a nurse (shot by Paolo Roversi), while the second cover, shot by Rafael Pavarotti, found a COVID-19 testing swab impossibly twisted in model Adit's nose, so as to appear like a septum ring. In a previous interview with SHOWstudio, Kamara asserted that, in an ideal world, all of his images would look like advertisements – which makes sense, considering both how pitch perfect and unforgettable his debut Dazed covers were.
But Kamara does not operate alone. Brazilian photographer Rafael Pavarotti is a key player in the shaping of Kamara's instantly recognisable visual world – to the extent where they each deserve equal credit. After meeting through Instagram and shooting their first story for i-D, the pair have since collaborated on a haunting lookbook for Maximilian Davis' debut collection for Fashion East, and most recently, the Dazed 30th anniversary covers of global superstar Rihanna.
Now, the pair have collaborated on the S/S 22 campaign for rising designer Feben. Drawing on the nomadism of her own background, Feben takes a surrealistic approach to exploring the visual codes of Black life from all corners of the globe. Who better to create the campaign than Pavarotti and Kamara? Titled X-Pression, the clothes in the campaign are dubbed as existing to 'amplify our euphoric highs and nurture us through the abyssal lows that so many of us have endured.' Featuring beaded tote bags hand-crocheted by artisans in Ghana, sarong skirts, and a collaboration with artist Shaye Tek, the campaign is shot in signature Pavarotti-Kamara style – models posing as twins against acidic, colour-soaked backdrops.
Check out the full campaign here.
