Karlstrom Creatives

Karlstrom Creatives | Photography | Peter Karlstrom | Stylist | Leigh Karlstrom

 

 

The passion and love comes from creating something that is yours. We see what we do as a story and the characters just come to life.

Petter Karlstrom

 

One of my most favourite topics within the realm of Australian fashion is the creative team. We often take for granted the contribution that these teams make to the success of independent designers, important events, and the general gorgeous hype that our industry rocks. No other creative team is more deserving of this kudos which is the topic of my latest editorial.

Who are they? Karlstrom Creatives.

I absolutely love the work of Petter and Leigh Karlstrom.

They have reached, what I consider to be, the pinnacle of creative prowess.

Petter and Leigh Karlstrom are the dynamic duo. Quite literally. Petter is the photographer,  Leigh the stylist.

I first discovered their work when I interviewed the amazing Chisato Chris Arai, another creative genius. Definitely one of Australia’s most coveted makeup artists. If you have not discovered Chris Arai yet, do yourself the pleasure of checking out her work. Just navigate through the menu to her article. Truly inspiring.

But back to the Karlstrom duo. Their work is fresh, inspiring, different, engaging, and pure creativity. It is the epitome of imagination and fantasy, and I love it!

I can’t sing the praises of these people enough. I know, I know. You think I say that about everyone I interview. Well I do try to sing everybody’s praises. That’s true. But it is never undeserved, as I am blessed to be granted interviews with the very coolest of people!

Every now and again, you come across people and talent that is truly special. And this article is about these human gemstones.

Petter told me, “the streets inspire us. Characters and spaces. I usually get an idea from being at a cool location and then the rest just comes naturally”.

I questioned him about their intense use of colour, and asked if that was a deliberate aspect of their work. He told me, “No. Not at all. I love black and white and Leigh loves colour. We meet somewhere in the middle … right now we are stripping back all colour and going back to our natural expression. It feels good”.

As a photographer/stylist duo, I asked if he regarded each other as the ‘perfect match’? His answer was so refreshing! “As we are married, we understand each other very well. We are very honest with each other and that helps when you work together. Our roles do cross over a bit”.

Their work possesses an amazing energy and dynamic attraction. I was interested if they consciously set out to achieve this over and over again.  He told me that they always strive for a realness and a believability across their work and the movement just flows from that.

When I asked him about their greater creative team, he mentioned his appreciation for their great bunch of friends and their access to a broader pool of creative talent, from good producers to the very talented crew.

Petter and Leigh are not only creative stars in Australia. Their work takes them around the globe, and they have great clients in Europe. I think one of the things I most love about their work, is that there are almost always unidentifiable influences shining through.

It seems to me that their creative work aligns to that of an artist or painter.

Its surreal nature really sets Karlstrom Creatives apart.

I asked Petter how they have developed that particular style.  He said, “we do what seems natural to us. The passion and love comes from creating something that is yours. We see what we do as a story and the characters just come to life. I think we all see things and the world a little differently”.

I couldn’t wrap up our interview until I asked him about social media.

In my opinion their colourful, unmistakeable presence and contribution to our creative world is phenomenal. Naturally, much of their business comes through people who find them on social media.

“I  thinks it’s a great way of sharing and also to see what your mates and colleagues are up to. There is so much good work and exceptionally talented people out there. This alone keeps you on your toes and makes you push yourself even harder”.

Thanks Petter! Love. Love. Love, what you guys do!

I hope you love their work as much as I do.

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Check out Karlstrom Creatives | Instagram |

Until next time,

Jade xx