Tony Federico "Male Vibe"

Fine Art Print
59,4 x 72,2 cm
Limited edition: 15 prints

Gallery quality print

Hahnemühle Photo Matt Fibre 200 g/qm
Printed, stamped & numbered in Berlin

EU Free Shipping

About this artwork

Shot on Polaroid i-Type 600 / 5x8
Milano / 2008

“I met this young man at a show by Antonio Marras, the great designer known for his visions for Kenzo. All models were waiting bored backstage - wardrobe was not ready yet. In such moments of downtime, the models sat around together, eating pizza, drinking champagne, having fun. A show for women's fashion was coming up - so this model looked out of place. He sat there like a fifth-grader who shows up at a birthday party and finds that he is the only boy there.
When I approached him about the Polaroid, he was happy to see me, hoping I could calm down this wild bunch - a delusion, of course. You'd think he liked his position, practically being the cock of the walk. But he told me that the opposite was the case. Dozens of beautiful girls were all around him. And they had their fun with him. Sometimes they mothered him, sometimes they wanted to test him as a gentleman, sometimes they were cheeky and laughed at him. Not an easy situation for a shy young man. Many years later, I met him again and he told me that he had become a father. He seemed really grown up now. He was living in the Czech Republic again, where he had founded a model agency. I had also become a father in the meantime and we had a great conversation about our experiences with the fashion industry and about the responsibility we had taken on by now - not only for our children but also for ourselves and for people weaker than ourselves. And we agreed that there was a structural problem in the industry that disadvantaged young women. He asked me if this was perhaps also a problem for Italian men?! Today, with the distance I have to Italy, I can confirm this to some extent. Without wanting to fall into clichés, Italian men do have a tendency towards machismo, that's true. But I have to say, after 10 years in Berlin, men in Germany could also be inspired by the good sides of the Italians. Open a bottle of Prosecco, surprise your girl - or boy - with a hot bath, take them out to a nice restaurant, do something crazy now and then. Keep the relationship alive and leave room for the unpredictable - even if this is a bit counter-intuitive to the logical German man.”

www.tonyfederico.it

* "Framed option" comes with a premium Nielsen aluminium frame