Czech Design Connection. Photographer Ela Kudyn connected ADEMI handbags and František Jungvirt vases in a fashion editorial.

Clothes in pastel colors, bold make-up in the vintage style of the 90s and the look of a porcelain doll. Such stylization attracts attention in itself. Photographer Ela Kudyn, appearing under the by.elafoto brand, went even further in her fashion editorial and linked up with a pair of successful Czech designers František Jungvirt and Adéla Mitrengová. In the glass designer’s recently opened showroom, the walls of which are fittingly in pastel shades, the vases on the shelves were complemented by ADEMI handbags. The resulting images then highlight the work of each of the three artists.

Ela’s photography was brought about by a serious injury that prevented her from continuing to dance. She was therefore looking for a new way of self-expression, in which she would find the same satisfaction as in dancing. Photography offered her this – the opportunity to create her own interpretation of the point of view through the camera lens quickly enchanted Ele and became an impetus for her further work. She is most attracted to fashion photography combined with design. Her latest Czech Design Connection series is also in this spirit.

“I see this fashion editorial as my debut, even though I have been involved in photography for several years and have already completed a few projects. My inspiration, which gave the final form of the editorial, was the art direction surrealism. I also use his principles in my work,” says Ela Kudyn.

Inspiration and parts, from which the young photographer gradually assembled the final creative vision, but there was much more. The styling of the models was reflected in the Oscar-winning film Poor Things (Czech: Chudáčci), and the color palette refers to the film Edward Scissorhands directed by Tim Burton. Last but not least, the author used her fascination with geometry and regular lines, which intertwine with the work of glass designer František Jungvirt and Adély Mitrengová, who are behind the handbags of the ADEMI brand. It was the two designers’ view of shapes and colors that gave Ela the idea of ​​a joint project.

Three artists, one photo

The fashion editorial is based on pastel colors, which are coming back into fashion this year. František Jungvirta’s showroom, whose walls have an apricot and light blue hue, is perfect for such photo shoots. Vases and glass objects on the shelves were naturally complemented by ADEMI handbags from the Choices, Candy shop and Emotional reflections collections. The trio of models posing with the creations of both designers was chosen by Ela based on their visual diversity. The chosen clothes and expressive make-up in the style of the 90s underlined their look of porcelain dolls.

During the photo shoot itself, Ela was not afraid to take risks and used a technique that denied the precise nature of individual angles and compositions. In addition to the desire not to be limited in any way, this decision is again influenced by surrealism and its distorted presentation of reality. Thanks to the composition of some images, it can seem that the otherwise regular lines that can be found in Jungvirt’s showroom are broken and deformed.

“The apparent curve of the shelves works beautifully with the undulating shapes of some of my vases and the playful curves of the handbags from the Candy shop collection. The whole looks so compact that at first glance you might not even notice that there are not only vases on the shelves, but also the mentioned handbags,” points out František Jungvirt.

The color palette chosen by Ela, which fits perfectly into the space of Jungvirt’s showroom, only enhances the feeling of the rare interplay between the two designers and the photographer.