Paul Smith Photographs Collection

03 August 2009

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Sir Paul Smith says deciding to shoot his own advertising campaign was "pretentious".

The British fashion designer - who opened his first shop in 1970 and was knighted for his services to design in 2000 - is pleased with the pictures he took for his Autumn/Winter 09 campaign, but realises some people may criticise him.

He explained: "The whole idea of a designer doing photographs is sort of pretentious: 'I do everything, you know.' Like Karl whatshisname - Chanel's Karl Lagerfeld. I'm a snapper, not a photographer. I'm not Mario Testino. But my lot have been saying, 'You take pictures - you do it.' So I thought, 'Let's have a go.' My creative director and the marketing guy and the press people are all pleased with them."

It could be a street market or a fruit shop, but rarely a smart shop - more basic ways of trading

Paul - who boats a host of celebrity fans, including Cate Blanchett and Paul Weller - is a keen photographer who takes pictures daily, adding some of the shots provide the inspiration for his collections.

His latest campaign was pictured at a country house in Nottinghamshire, England.

Paul explained to Britain's The Times newspaper: "It's very English and very fun. One picture is a guy in a Prince of Wales suit with a big pile of sandwiches and we had a lamb, but then I realised it was a winter shoot - 'Lose the lamb!'

"Often my photos are about opposites. Or humour, like the telescope at the top of the Empire State Building. Or the strangeness of trees at the top of a high-rise building. Another subject I like is shops: how people trade and how they display things they have for sale. It could be a street market or a fruit shop, but rarely a smart shop - more basic ways of trading."

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