The Sartorialist's Heroes | Scott Schuman | Big Think

The Sartorialist's Heroes

New videos DAILY

Join Big Think Edge for exclusive videos

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This Midwestern guy still looks up to Mom and Pops, but any rugged individual with a vision gets a nod.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Scott Schuman:

After launching the now famous "Sartorialist" blog in 2005, Scott Schuman has emerged as an influential force in the world of fashion. A self-taught photographer, Schuman shoots for publications including French Vogue, American GQ, Fantastic Man and Elle, and a growing list of advertising clients. He has also shown his work at the New York photo gallery The Danziger Projects and appeared in the GAP Style Icon campaign in the fall of 2008. He has been named the number one fashion photography trend by American Photo magazine, as well as one of Time magazine’s top 100 design influencers. Penguin published an anthology of his favorite photographs in 2009. The hardcover collection is aptly entitled, "The Sartorialist."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TRANSCRIPT:

Question: Who are your Heroes?

Scott Schuman: My heroes are my mom and dad and I think just anyone that succeeds at what they do through really you know trying to do something unique and different and interesting, something that maybe not that people told them would never work, but that you know really says something about who they are and how they saw something differently and it’s a bunch of different things. You know the guys that do the Mac computers, the design for the Mac computers I think are great. I don’t know if they’d be a hero, but someone I definitely look up to. You know and take that chance of saying you know we’re going to do them in color now and then knowing as someone that used to work in the fashion business how tough that is to go to the stores and say we want you to buy these computers in color now and that they’re going to come back and say how are you going to buy… I don’t know what color, what percentage to put, what color and what computer and all that, someone that has such a passion for something and is willing to really go through all the steps and be able to sell that concept to somebody you know whether it’s designing the Mac computer, whether it’s Armani in the ‘80s doing a completely different kind of design for women, whether it’s Bruce Webber kind of figuring out how to shoot people in a wholesome but sexy way. You know those are the people that I look at that I think I’m the most inspired by in terms for their work.

Recorded December 2, 2009