Intervju: Craig Arend på Altamira / Interview: Craig Arend of Altamira

[FOR ENGLISH, SCROLL DOWN A BIT]

När Craig Arend på streetstyle-bloggen Altamira mailade mig inför sin resa till Stockholm i slutet av maj, såg jag det som ett utmärkt tillfälle att träffas och ställa några frågor. Jag undrar varför alla streetstlebloggar ofta ser likadana ut, om det är för att de inspirerar varandra eller helt enkelt ringar in rådande trender som folk vill se och som bara inte går att förneka?

Craig har en egen sida i Teen Vogue och brukar fota modepartyn för style.com, men när vi träffas är Stockholm det han pratar mest om  – hur det är den mest underbara staden han varit med om. Kanske fanns en anknytning i att vi befann oss mitt i den rekordvarma helgen där i maj, (i morse gick jag till jobbet i dunjacka -  vi vet hur uppskattande lite värme kan göra oss) men enligt Craig var svenskar världens mest trevliga folk. Några frågor kring hans syn på sin blogg lyckades jag in alla fal få in. Intervjun följer nedan på engelska.

IN ENGLISH:

 When Craig Arend of New York-based street style blog Altamira e-mailed me suggesting a coffee during his upcoming trip to Stockholm, not only did he confirm the rumors of him being the nicest and friendliest guy – I also thought it would be a great opportunity to get inside the head of a street style fashion blogger. What does he look for? And how come he is switching focus from us mere street walking ‘mortals’, to devoting his blog to off duty models? And more importantly, how does one go from just enjoying people on the street dressing flamboyantly – to getting his own page in Teen Vogue?

We met up in a café close to the Royal Theater. He was lucky enough to be here during one of the hottest week-ends in May ever to occur in Swedish history. He kept going on about how much he loved the Swedish friendliness, but I stopped him to ask a bit about his blog.

HOW COME YOU STARTED SHOOTING STREET STYLE?
__Everything initially started in may 2006. I was in Paris for vacation, and walking around the Etienne Marcel area, I was overwhelmed by how many, quirky, cool and stylish people there were there. So I started snapping away, like Bill Cunningham, just snap! Candid style. Then I thought, maybe I should try and stop these people? So I asked them and they stopped! But, unfortunately, I waited until June 2007 before I put my blog up. So it’s been up for about two years now.

WERE THERE A LOT OF STREETSTYLE BLOGS AROUND THEN? I DON'T RECALL.
__Not really. The Sartorialist of course, it started in 2005, and Hel Looks and Style in Berlin, they where the big ones back then. I was really in the second wave of streetstyle bloggers. Even though I really started shooting a year earlier.

YEAH, AND NOW THE STREET STYLE BLOGGERS ARE REALLY POPPING UP EVERYWHERE. WHY DO YOU THINK YOU HAVE BECOME POPULAR? WHY ARE YOUR PHOTOS IN TEEN VOGUE?
__It's because I have created a niche. If I was to ask you, who was the first person to fly solo over the Atlantic, what would your answer be?

UH. LINDBERGH?
__Exactly. Who was the second person?

I DON'T KNOW.
__How about the third person?

THAT WAS PROBABLY THE FIRST WOMAN. AMELIA EARNHART OR SOMETHING.
__Yes! You are the first person who’s ever known that! Amazing. Anyways, no one remembers who was second. So the idea is, if you can’t be first in a category, invent a category you can be first in. Because it’s easier and smarter to be first than to try and be better. And yeah The Sartorialist will always be the biggest, the first, the best at what he does.

SO WHAT WILL YOU BE FIRST AT? WHAT'S YOUR NICHE?
__Models. My blog is big enough so I can now become the first one to totally focus on models. And everyone really seem to want it – everyone loves models! Alongside that, my blog also incorporates the occasional night shots – they are the most difficult form of photography to master I think. And also, my photos are always a bit fun, people smile, jump, and just let loose.

BUT HOW DO YOU FIND ALL THOSE MODELS ON THE STREETS? OK THEY'RE TALL AND ALL BUT NEW YORK IS A BIG CITY. DO YOU CALL THEM UP TO MEET WITH THEM?
__Oh, no, they all hang out in the same areas. I know where to look. And also I just have to walk around the blocks of the big modeling agency’s headquarters and you immediately spot them. I think of it like this; Jak and Jil will have shoes, Facehunter will have underground, The Sartorialist will do his thing, and Altamira will have model street style.

AND TEEN VOGUE LOVES IT`?
__Teen Vogue loves it. Haha, no but really I hope to keep on contributing to them, and also continue to shoot at parties for style.com. I will also be going to all the fashion weeks of course, and focus on the models.

I FIRST DICSOVERED YOUR BLOG THROUGH THAT PHOTO OF SONNY GROO AND JEAN PAUL PAULA IN HEELS.
__Yeah that was massive, it spread everywhere didn’t it. And now suddenly you see a lot of guys at fashion weeks wearing heels, you didn’t see that at all before him.

THAT'S TRUE. IT'S REALLY FUN TO SEE I THINK, I HATE IT WHEN PEOPLE SAY THOSE GUYS ARE OVER THE TOP. WHEN THEY REALLY ARE FABULOUS. DID A LOT OF PEOPLE FIND YOUR BLOG THROUGH THAT PHOTO? OR DID YOU HAVE A LOT OF TRAFFIC ALREADY?
__I actually already had quite a lot of traffic. Altamira really got big early last year, when I took these photos of Marc Jacobs and Rachel Zoe on a bench together. It was not long after his show, the one where he had started on time and actually without waiting for Zoe to arrive. All over the press were these rumors about them fighting. But then I saw them on a bench together, friendly as ever, and that picture of course spread out everywhere.

WAS THAT A FAVORITE PHOTOGRAPH MOMENT?
__Yes, but my all time favorite was just a few weeks ago I saw Agyness Deyn walking up Lafayette Street in Nolita. She was about 20 feet away from me, so I shouted out her name, "Agyness!" She didn't hear me the first time, so I walked up a little bit closer and said her name again, "Agyness!" This time she turned around and I mentioned, "Hey, I took your photo last summer!” , "Yeah!" she nodded her head up and down. "Did you ever get a chance to see the shot? It turned out beautifully" I asked. She replied, "no I didn't." "you were standing like this" I pulled my chin to my shoulder and did my very best Agyness impression . She laughed and so did all of her friends. I tell that story because it's fun!

WHAT DOES ALTAMIRA MEAN?
__There are caves in Spain called "altamira". When spoken I thought the name sounded cool and when literally translated from Spanish to English, it means "high view". In this case, high view of the streets!

I LIKE STREETSTYLE PICS WHEN IT'S NOT ONLY SKINNY GIRLS OR OLD GUYS OR PEOPLE WHO LOVE STREET STYLE BLOGS IN THE PHOTOS. HOW DO YOU SPOT PEOPLE ON THE STREETS – OTHER THAN MODELS THEN – WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR WIHTOUT GETTING THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER AGAIN BUT STILL BEING ON INTERESTING?
__Style and attitude. Confidence trumps tradition. Someone with a cohesive look, whether that is rockablilly 50’s or avant garde Rick Owens. It has to be a whole package of style wrapped into one, from well kept shoes to nice hair to well maintained clothing. If they look great, then it doesn't matter if it's a masculine woman or a feminine man.

DO YOU HAVE A MUSE OR A CERTAIN FASHION PERSONALITY YOU LOVE TO SHOOT?
__Some people may disagree with me here, but I love Swedish women's fashion. It seems so androgynous, women in pants and menswear inspired blazers. I also love Barbara Martello's style, she’s a stylist for Vogue Spain.

SO, WHAT ABOUT US SWEDES, WHAT DO YOU THINK OF STOCKHOLM AS A CITY?
__Can I just say this – I love Stockholm. There is no other city I've fallen in love with as much as Stockholm! Each city has it's own set of strengths and weaknesses, New York is the power and money center of the fashion universe, London is renowned for it's distinctive sense of individual expression, which in my theory, is a compensation for the local Londoner's lack of disposable income. Paris will always be the cult center for classic, effortless chic.
__But my favorite city in the world is now Stockholm. The character of the people distinguish it from other great global capitals I've visited. On my first day in Stockholm, I didn't realize that my credit card wouldn't work on certain networks. So I was stuck at a cafe having ordered an espresso without the means to pay for it. The barista just said, "I'll give you one if you want". On my trip from the airport, a local Swede was taking a cab and offered to let me ride with him. When I offered money to split the fare, he declined. When at another cafe to spend my collection of coins, and I ran out of money, the girl behind the bar just gave me the espresso for free. People are not only generous with their money, but also with their time. I was impressed with how people would stop and smoke a cigarette with you while chatting, even after only being briefly introduced in the past. This happened on more than one occasion. Plus, in Stockholm, the sense of social class equality is pervasive, so there is a refreshing sense of "class division relief" from the capitalist American system I've lived so long with.