(video by Kanin Manawatanakij)
I started working as an intern for TAHAANGA in the beginning of June, and my summer with them has been spectacular to say the least. I’m hoping to work in fashion, styling to be precise. I asked Manuela, the company’s CEO and creative director, if I could do a shoot for the brand where I styled our dress shirts in a different way. She was more than enthusiastic to hear that I wanted to do this, and was excited to see what direction I would take.
I wanted to change the way people view mens dress shirts, for them to be seen as versatile and not just a businessman’s uniform. One thing that’s inspired me lately with my art is femininity, especially how it doesn’t only apply to women. I wanted to channel a specific type of softness into the look, using flowy pants, flowers, and by creating the feeling of stillness with my photos. I looked to artists like Picasso and Dali, and performers like Prince and David Bowie to help express the feel I wanted to present with this shoot.
Having my friend, Jorge, model for me made everything easy peasy lemon squeezy. He and I are super close, so when we worked together our wavelengths were basically the same. He understood what I wanted him to do, and perfectly portrayed the kind of TAHAANGA man I wanted him to be. He asked questions to figure out just what I wanted, made suggestions to help complete the looks, and listened carefully when I explained my ideas.
I’m super excited to share the results of my work, and I hope this transforms how people style their dress shirts, because like every article of clothing or every piece of artwork, it’s translated differently by different people - and I hope that translation begins to show when people wear their dress shirts.
