In the world of fashion, the past represents an endless source of ideas and inspiration. John Galliano consistently looks to the early decades of this century for guidance, Tom Ford at Gucci turns to the more recent era of the 1970s. Like so many of their peers, both are engaged in reinvention, a process whereby the old is given a fresh twist which makes it look new. This is an age of recycling in fashion, reflecting the more widespread interest in preservation and heritage. Every former period is considered to have its own merits and, accordingly, these turn up regularly. The same preoccupation with the past is evident in the related field of fashion photography, where the present generation scrutinises the work of its predecessors. One of the first instances of the 1970s revival was the return to favour of that decade's favourite photographer, Helmut Newton. But no particular era is allowed to prevail in this medium, as one period style is juxtaposed with another. Photographers are not simply influenced by others working in the same form but, just like designers, also explore other areas of creativity. Film, visual art, industrial design and advertising are just some of the possible fields which may be tapped, as well as the wealth of material from the past. Fashion shoots may be set up to produce pictures in the style of an Venetian 16th-century painting or a Victorian daguerreotype. The past is ripe for pillaging when it comes to fashion photography.
Dubliner Peter Evers is typical of this approach, ready to take an eclectic angle when he begins when on a shoot. For the pictures shown here today, he turned for inspiration to Aubrey Beardsley, the artist who died a century ago. He was a master of the black and white line drawing in which eroticism was a constant, if often restrained, presence, and Beardsley's work has never really fallen from favour, as successive generations discover his skill with the pen. "I like the intensity of his women," Evers explains. "There's something completely other-wordly about them. And I always notice the amount of space in his pictures as well as the simplicity of the compositions in black and white". The underlying romanticism in many Beardsley pictures is now returning to favour among fashion designers, which helps to explain his appeal to Peter Evers. Then, there is the rather gothic quality of the drawings - a legacy from the PreRaphaelites - which also finds resonances in contemporary fashion. But the temptation to place too strong an emphasis on Beardsley should be avoided as Evers, like the majority of other young photographers, changes style and approach with every shoot. "I try to take my inspiration from absolutely anywhere - I could be open to influences from painters, television, whatever. I like working best either with very specific ideas or with a total stream of consciousness." A professional in the medium for less than two years, Peter Evers is one of the latest group of Irish photographers to emerge. Earlier this year, he held an exhibition of his work at Arthouse in Dublin's Temple Bar. The show was called Dynamic Forces, a title he says could be applied to all his photography. "Basically, that's at the very heart of all the work because it's always changing. A lot of fashion photographs are very static, but I'm not interested in doing cliches". Typically, his two latest shoots have been based around the work of anthropologist Desmond Morris and album covers by The Smiths. "A lot of the work I do is very thematic," he confirms. Fortunately, the past is replete with themes so he should have no problem finding inspiration for years to come.