Tzenkoff

An iconic sense of hushed elegance was deemed the most appropriate of interpretations for this advertising campaign – shot by photographer Greg Kadel, within a discreetly-chic apartment.

Inspiration was found among timeless blonde beauties of the silver screen – Kim Novak, as proposed through the lens of Alfred Hitchcock, for example – or Faye Dunaway and Grace Kelly, in their classic Hollywood guises.

The resulting images collectively offered an updated interpretation of this aesthetic; nodding to the past, but whispering – most seductively – about the here and now.

Tzenkoff acted as an essential link between Nicolas Andreas Taralis at Cerruti, and the producer of his Spring/Summer 08 men’s runway presentation in Paris.

This involved the practical organisation of this high profile show – at various significant levels – with the ultimate aim of enabling Taralis to successfully realise his distinctive vision for Cerruti’s future. Photos Amy Sioux

Tzenkoff believed the art director’s intended vision for Cerruti’s menswear advertising campaign could be most successfully realised with collaboration from one particular photographer: Judy Linn.

Her seminal images of New York’s 1970s most creative downtown denizens, such as Robert Mapplethorpe, Sam Sheppard and, of course, Patti Smith (Linn shot covers for Smith’s 1972 book, Seventh Heaven, as well as her Radio Ethiopia album in 1976), have been widely admired and emulated throughout the subsequent decades.

Linn was the ideal candidate for this project, as her archive of starkly-shot subjects resonated perfectly with the brooding themes underpinning designer Nicholas Andreas Taralis’ work at Cerruti. Having been invited to participate, Linn’s inimitable interpretations of the contemporary Cerruti man proved pivotal to the power and credibility of the resulting campaign.