As the old adage goes, a picture says a thousand words. In Jimmy Cohrssen's case, a picture will hopefully inspire a thousand miles. Air France and Le Meridian tapped the famed travel photographer to curate a digital photography exhibit by traveling the globe to document some of the world's most sensational and stylish locales. Prepare for a major case of vacation envy when you visit aphotographersjourney.com for front row access to his A Photographer's Journey: A discovery of details from takeoff to turndown.
Sift through instant inspiration grouped by theme — Style, Voyage, and Art de Vivre — and choose your favorite photographs to be included in a final exhibition unveiled in NYC on December 11. Even better than playing digital curator? You'll have the opportunity to win a pair of Air France tickets to any of the destinations Jimmy visited (Tahiti, anyone?).
Cohrssen's no stranger to seeing his work on global display. His resume reads like a who's who of the fashion and art set, including clients like Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior, and publications like Surface and Conde Nast Traveler. Here, for a hot second, I catch up with the man who puts my meager airline miles to shame.
Julie Bensman: How do you see the worlds of fashion and travel impacting each other?
Jimmy Cohrssen: Travel and fashion are so entwined they can't be separated. Airlines have a glorious history of work with designers. Air France alone has worked with Christian Dior, Balenciaga, and now Christian Lacroix.
The popularity of brands like Louis Vuitton and Goyard have brought the art of travel back into style. I've recently been working with Moynat, an equally old French brand, who were famous for fitting luggage to the form of your car. I've taken some of their bags with me and shot them in exotic locations.
JB: In your travels for this particular project, which city did you find had the most stylish citizens?
JC: It would be cliché to say Paris...but I will have to say Paris. Shanghai has amazing style and a rich history of French culture, but most of the fashion there follows Paris. Though, Tokyo-ites have an incredible sense of fashion and individualism. They strive for a unique look.
JB: Which photo evokes the most memories for you personally?
JC: Images from Paris are strong for me, as I lived there for eight years. Perhaps the image of Shanghai at sunrise (above)...it was the 70th floor rooftop and I was standing on the ledge with no guardrail…
JB: Where have you not yet visited that you would like to?
JC: Dubai, Africa, Australia…still so much to see and so little time. But I did just add extra pages to my passport so I'm ready to go.
Via: A Photographer's Journey: Closed Set with Julie Bensman