I am glad to have found a great photographer because there is no one in Wichita who is able to produce the same high quality of work. His name is Gordon S. Bernstein and his studio is in Melrose, MA, which is so far away from me that I've only met him once. It's very scary to send my work away to be photographed when I don't have any control over the final product, especially when much of my work is installation art. However, Gordon has always had a top notch stylist and studio assistant working by his side who specializes in the fiber arts. I am sad to report that the stylist, Arnebet, passed away recently after a long illness. The one time I was at the studio, I had the opportunity to meet him and this post is written in his memory.
Arnebet was a real macho guy who loved the clothing models who came into the studio and the girls loved him, too. As you can see, he was often caught making out with them when he was not required to be on the set. You can tell he's not gay by where he's looking.
One of the great advantages of working with Arnebet was his meticulous attention to detail. In the first picture, he is carefully arranging scarves made by Lisa Micheels and in the second picture, he is checking the proper positioning for my own artwork, Unmatched. Apparently, he tried dialing Misti's phone number that's written inside the matchbook cover but only got a busy signal.
Always a stickler for perfection, Arnebet would work tirelessly with the models, demonstrating the pose he wanted them to take. He was very secure in his masculinity so this did not bother him a bit. In the second picture, he is showing Sam how to keep her back straight and her ears at the correct angle. From what I understand, she was never able to get the ear part quite right.
Often described as being cute as a bunny, Arnebet was so dedicated to his craft that he was frequently willing to work for nothing more than raisins. He will be sorely missed.
