🤔 How Does Juergen Teller's W Mag Shoot Make You Feel?
An exploration into his divisive style.
GM everyone. I’ve been a bit under the weather since New Year’s but I hit Equinox today and am feeling BACK! While there is a lot of interesting news going on right now, the topic I think deserves the most attention is this new W Mag cover series shot by one of fashion’s most divisive photographers: Juergen Teller.
If you’re not aware, Juergen Teller is a German-born photographer known for his ultra-realist, bizarre style. He has long been a staple for fashion campaigns, and is back in the discourse again for shooting W Mag’s new ‘Best Performances’ issue, which highlights some of the actors behind last year’s buzzy performances (damn… no Bradley Cooper)
Teller photographed stars such as Margot Robbie, Robert Downey Jr., Charles Melton, and Julianne Moore (just saw May December and loved it). The photos are getting a divisive reaction online from people claiming Teller’s style is ‘lazy’ and does not do these stars justice. Each shoot places a star often in an odd outfit, in a surrealistically normal environment (Natalie Portman is in a Hollywood Blvd. gift shop).
Teller uses only natural light, producing an uncharacteristically flat image. This isn’t the first time Teller has inspired controversy online, his 2021 W Mag shoot did just the same, as well as his most recent campaign for Loewe. While it is easy to write off Teller’s work as uninspired, and to claim ANYONE could take these photos on their iPhone, they are missing the artistic narrative behind Teller’s work.
The interesting dynamic at play here is the juxtaposition between these Hollywood icons and the lo-fi aesthetic of these photos. Whereas most fashion campaigns and magazine editorials feature intricate sets, pricey, tailored outfits, and lights with enough wattage to charge a Cybertruck, Teller’s shoots ditch these tropes, depicting celebrity through the same lens we take photos of our friends, pets, or someone on the street. They place these stars amidst accessible, mundane places.
Teller gives us a lens into REALITY through his photos, and this style is purely intentional. While it works in W Mag’s favor as these shoots generate a lot of buzz and memes, Teller has been using this awkward, candid aesthetic for some time. By stripping away the expected motifs of professional shoots, he gives us a unique perspective: celebrity is a made up construct.
In a world where the iPhone camera is the means by which many experience reality, I find that these photos and other forms of lofi photography resonate with audiences more than shoots with massive budgets. I’ve written before about how major e-commerce stores like Zara are employing lofi photography for product hero shots.
A new trend of AI generated art has arrived, often creating fantastical depictions of reality, striving for photorealistic perfection.
Teller’s style juxtaposes this perfectly, giving us a true depiction of reality, flaws and all. In a world of endless optimization and perfection, Teller’s slice of truth stands out.
TLDR: I love this shoot.
See you all tomorrow for a completely different topic! Bye.
About Jake
Jake Bell is a content marketing strategist based in NYC. He specializes in branding, art direction, creative strategy, content creation, and making things cool.
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