Award-winning Portuguese hairstylist and fashion photographer Nino Bartolo is showcasing his work throughout the years in an exhibition titled VISION THROUGH MY EYES at the Taipa Village Living Space, integrating skills and elements from both photography and hairstyling.
Each work, a recent statement from the Taipa Village Cultural Association noted, integrates skills from both mediums such as make-up, lighting, costume design and the professional team behind the scenes that “make an ethereal photograph come to life.”
Bartolo, who was born and raised in Macau, is “a hair stylist by profession and fashion photographer by passion,” the statement said. Throughout his hairdressing career, he has won a number of competitions in Asia.
Some of his pictures, meanwhile, have received online photography awards such as the Exposure Award Photo Competition’s “Picture of the Year 2011/12”, the statement pointed out, while some of his works were published in the Italian Vogue magazine. He has also photographed celebrities such as actor Simon Callow and local duo Soler.
Besides, Bartolo worked in Stockholm for a year before moving to London to join the Sassoon Academy for five years. The statement noted that afterwards he spent four years at hair education company Allilon, where he was the creative stylist and educational director, while also working for various international magazines and collaborating on fashion video advertisements.
He also worked as a creative director at the Debut Hair Academy & Salon in Shanghai between 2013 and 2017, which is the year he founded hairdressing and photography education brand “Code 17”.
Inspiration & challenges in making pictures
Speaking with The Macau Post Daily during the exhibition’s opening ceremony last week, Bartolo said that hairdressers try to be inspired daily. He added that they try to see which direction a photoshoot may go, which at times may be done alongside make-up artists. Having a direction for where one wants to go, Bartolo added, is a “need” from which one can develop ideas.
Bartolo also noted that challenges are to be expected in each photoshoot, which may range from venue and costume issues to a model being unable to pose naturally. “A challenge is always a challenge, but once you’ve done this for so many years, you’ll know how to deal with these problems.”
With the exhibits created throughout the years, Bartolo said that his personal favourite among them is his 2017 picture titled “The Afterparty”.
“I created that picture,” he said, noting that he directed everything ranging from the clothes and lighting to the mood that picture created.
The exhibition runs until December 9 and is open daily except Mondays from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is free. More details can be found at https://www.taipavillagemacau.com/ .
Nino Bartolo poses in front of his favourite piece titled “The Afterparty” during last week’s opening ceremony at the Taipa Village Living Space.
– Photos: Rui Pastorin
Nino Bartolo’s works on display at the exhibition.
