Cloe is the latest book-length offering by Italian photographer Leonardo Glauso. The 70 pages of this beautifully presented hardcover, large format book documents a compelling collaboration between Glauso and the model Cloe. With both restraint and gusto, the project manages to hold in its palm the fragile moment and magnetic presence of the subject.
Shooting on digital, Glauso takes care to create intimate moments. These moments live beyond the typical candid and staged dichotomy. Glauso instead combines the staged and the real — like discovering a photoshoot not meant for your eyes. There is a hint of scandal, the suggestion of a tryst. It’s a delicate balance, but one that the model and photographer handle well.
Many of the photographs feature Cloe with flowers, including the lily — the flower of Florence where the photoshoot took place. Others take us to more surreal territory, like the photo used for the cover showing Cloe laying down, covered in fruit slices. The work is not afraid to explore, does not tire itself over any single idea. Glauso roots the images in Cloe and only Cloe. Such an approach allows for a playful approach, and the reader can’t help but feel carried away with this ethic of discovery.
The entire shoot is minimally adorned, focused entirely on the subject who is framed by barren interiors, often wearing nothing but shadows. The lack of stage elements that might dominate a shot reinforces the feeling of a model and photographer caught in a book-length dance of ideas, improvisations, and the fun of their art.
Amid all of this exploration, Glauso is able to sustain a tenderness — a tenderness tinged at the edges with the whim of fleeting moments.
Glauso’s work in fashion photography helps inform the development of this series, an instinct for the charged pose and suggestive detail. His experience includes his role as the founder and editor of Resuer Magazine, an international fashion publication. Resuer also favors the specious present, that interval of consciousness that we consider the here and now.
While each image in Cloe is caught on the edge of a moment, the overall effect of the book is somehow larger, as the reader develops a profound relationship over the course of these 70 pages. That accumulation of memories creates the feeling of a lived experience, a dream-like weekend now over but always with you. Altogether, the book carries with it a drama and narrative all its own, being the product of a creative collaboration that bubbled and came to fruition in the storied
city of Florence.
The project represents a milestone in the young photographer’s career. Glauso was born in the city of Florence in 1989. Cloe represents Glauso’s arrival to a new level, flexing a variety of skills and sensibilities that mark him as a bold yet sophisticated talent.
Barry Lachey is a Professional Editor at Zobuz. Previously He has also worked for Moxly Sports and Network Resources “Joe Joe.” He is a graduate of the Kings College at the University of Thames Valley London. You can reach Barry via email or by phone.
