Photographing Zandra Rhodes

Zandra Rhodes in her penthouse, photograph by Martin Gardner

I’m a third year BA Photography student at UCA, and on the 10th December 2012, I went up to London to meet and photograph famous fashion designer Zandra Rhodes at her studio.  As I walked up Bermondsey Street I saw a bright orange and pink building and realised it had to be the place!  Once inside I was introduced to Zandra Rhodes.  She walked down her stairs, from her penthouse, dressed in a very unique and stylish outfit with bright pink hair.

Zandra Rhodes in her studio, photograph by Martin Gardner

As I was shown around her studio and her apartment above the studio, I saw her library area and decided it was a great place to start.  I felt as if it really summed up Zandra’s personality.  All the bookcases were painted pink, with books filling the shelves and under the sofas.  There were also many unusual vibrantly coloured ornaments.  Once Zandra was ready I asked her to sit in the corner on her sofa with the bookcase as the background.  The photos I took were all shot on a digital SLR camera, and I used a flash on my camera as the lighting in the room was very low.

Zandra Rhodes in her penthouse, photograph by Martin Gardner

I was then taken upstairs to her kitchen, dining room, and living area, which is all one big room.  I noticed there were many ornaments that were made to look like Zandra.  Her home wasn’t just an apartment, it was a glimpse into Zandra’s mind.  I only had up to an hour to photograph and in this time I also had to decide where I was going to position and take the photographs.  I felt I was successful in the end and was pleased with the end result.

When I was given this opportunity I was really excited and I felt it provided me with some amazing experience.  I had never worked with anyone of her status so I was pretty nervous to begin with but she was very kind and patient.  I left her studio and couldn’t wait to get home and look through the photographs I had taken!