Jil Sander Spring 2020 Ad Campaign

Jil Sander’s new ad campaign was photographed on location in Sicily and Palermo, and southern Italy functions as one of the campaign’s main characters, along with models Saana Mirzaie and Damien Medina. Jil Sander’s Creative Directors Lucie and Luke Meier, in collaboration with Buero Paris Creative Director Heiko Keinath and Photographer Olivier Kervern, deliver an abstract and gorgeously executed meditation on the ways that harmony can exist between opposites, juxtaposing open fields with Baroque architecture, fluid textiles with sculptural stonework, and subtle interplays between the masculine and feminine.

Lucie and Luke Meier invited Photographer Olivier Kervern to join them on a recent road trip, and these ascetic and voluptuous images are the result. Sicily is a popular place to travel for fashion shoots, and Kervern uses the local architecture and primordial textures to brilliant effect.

“These photographs are both abstract and sensitive; sharp, delicate, and extremely honest. In these environments and buildings, in these portraits, Olivier has captured the emotions we intended. It was a true pleasure working with him”.
– Lucie and Luke Meier

The sensitive use of light and shade, plus the combination of natural and human-made objects that blend together seamlessly makes this campaign feel more like art photography, rather than a commercial advertisement. Indeed, there are a few photos such as a cracked window pane in front of a blurry skyline, and a doorway that opens to the ocean, which don’t include any products at all. This thoughtful approach makes one realize how blatant and contrived other ad campaigns can be, while simultaneously encouraging viewers to find those spontaneous moments of beauty that surround each of us in our day-to-day lives.