Pierre et Gilles

PHOTOGRAPHY BY DANIEL TRESE

INTERVIEW BY LYAS

How did the Gayletter shoot go?

Gilles: Very well. We were at a hotel, a very nice one. It was called the Public Hotel.

Pierre: With a beautiful view. They had a big dinner too one night after the book signing at Marc Jacobs’s bookstore.

Did you ever take a photo of Marc Jacobs?

G: Yes, a long time ago.

P: With the colorful balls.

G: He was adorable.

I had dinner with him in NY. He’s amazing.

P: His bookshop is great too.

And he told me something that stuck in my mind. I asked him, “What’s the next collection going to be?” And he replied, “But how should I know? It’s not finished.”

G: Well, it shows that he’s a real artist. That he’s discovering things as he goes along.

Do you think like that too?

P: Well, yes.

G: Absolutely. When we work, we know the direction we’re going in, but we expect surprises. Sometimes we take a different path. Since we do everything ourselves, that’s the advantage. Because there are a lot of photographers who hire a set designer to do the set design and all that, so everything is set in stone. With us, we do the set design from the beginning.

P: We start with the light.

G: Everything is constantly changing each time. And we’re surprised ourselves. That’s the beauty of it. It’s fun. It’s an adventure. You learn things by making mistakes.

When was the last time you cried?

G: I cry much less than I used to. It’s been a long time since I cried at the cinema. But I used to cry often at the cinema. I’ve cried when I lost a loved one.

P: Or to a song, I’ve cried.

G: Ah yes, he can cry. He watches Star Académie and then starts crying. I swear!

P: After a joint, it does a few things, please!

G: Pierre likes very popular things. I used to love those things before. But now, I don’t like it that much. Besides, I don’t watch TV anymore.

P: The last thing was Squid Game.

G: But I only watch the parts I like. I liked when T.O.P. was on.

Who’s T.O.P.?

P: He’s the Korean singer.

G: You know, the rapper.

Oh, he’s handsome.

G: He’s gorgeous. We photographed him. He came to Paris. He’s extraordinary. He’s from the K-Pop group Big Bang. The problem is…

P: He was arrested for smoking a joint.

G: So they analyzed his hair. They found traces, so he was put in prison. He tried to commit suicide. He had a terrible reputation in the country where they said he was a drug addict. So his career was completely put on hold for eight years.

P: And now he’s back with Squid Game.

G: The role is kind of based on his life.

P: Because he’s a bit of a drug addict in the show.

G: He was quite provocative. And you see that in the series. That’s what interested me.

You like people who are punk. A bit edgy.

G: Yes, that’s what we like. And he’s handsome.

He’s gorgeous.

P: He’s an incredible actor.

G: And as a model, he was extraordinary. He had fun playing around in the set, trying out different poses in a humorous way. He had a thousand different ways of expressing himself. We like it when people have something artistic in them, something they want to express. We often shoot our friends. They’re all a bit artistic, but they’re not specifically models. We often build the role on someone’s personality.

P: Yes, that’s important.

You really put the spotlight on young people. Always. The new generations.

P: Yes. Yes. The people around us. The people we like.

G: We feel more comfortable with the younger generation than with people our own age. We like to explore. We like novelty, discovering new things, being surprised, and so on. It’s interesting to engage with the new generation. It’s enriching.

That’s how you stay in the loop.

P: It’s not intentional. It’s natural.

G: It’s rewarding. And it makes us dream. You feel young when you’re surrounded by young people.

Do you keep an eye on fashion?

P: Not as much as when we used to go out a lot to fashion shows. The days of Mugler and company.

G: We sometimes go and see stuff by our friend Fifi Chachnil. I like to go and see the young designers. I’m much more interested in them. All their inspiration. Even their flaws. That’s the fragility of a young person’s work. It’s more rewarding to see. We prefer it because it has soul. There’s sensitivity.

I agree. And who would you like to shoot? A person? A star?

P: There are plenty of them, of course, but we actually love surprises.

G: We’re lucky. We’ve met lots of people we never thought we’d meet. We don’t particularly chase after celebrities.

P: No, no.

G: It’s all about meeting people. We photograph a lot of people who aren’t famous. That’s a big part of what we do.

Can we go back to the beginning? How did you fall in love, and how does your love influence your work?