There is a tale by writer Ennio Flaiano entitled “Le fotografie” (The photographs) that tells the story of his friendship with Italian photographer Pasquale De Antonis. The short story takes place in 1938, after Flaiano’s mum had suddenly died and the writer, feeling depressed, spent time in the back of De Antonis’ studio, drawing moustaches and beards on the newspaper photographs of the cardinals waiting for the new Pope’s election in Rome. De Antonis is portrayed in the story as a humble and honest man, a lover of art and books. 
The friendship between Flaiano and De Antonis continued in Rome where both moved from their native Abruzzo to live and work. His studio in Piazza di Spagna, soon became a meeting place for many artists, but there was a friendship, the one with fashion journalist and passionate art lover Irene Brin (to whom this blog is dedicated), that gave De Antonis the chance of beginning a new career. The two met after Brin opened with her husband Gaspero del Corso The Obelisk Gallery. Soon after they met, De Antonis' photographs began accompanying Brin’s fashion features and his photo shoots started chronicling the birth of Italian fashion. 
There are many fashion photographs by De Antonis I love, especially the ones taken in museums or among Roman ruins or the portraits of Irene Brin posing in a black jersey dress by Carosa surrounded by incunabula, trompe l’oeil and old and modern canvases in her gallery. Some of my fave pictures are those featuring model Ivy Nicholson posing at the Villa Giulia National Etruscan Museum or in a photo shoot entitled "Operazione 'Giro del Mondo'" (Operation 'Around the World') for magazine Bellezza.
There’s an exhibition dedicated to Pasquale De Antonis' fashion photographs at Rome's Palazzo Poli entitled “Pasquale De Antonis - La fotografia di moda 1946-1968”, and if you want to know more about it you can read my piece about De Antonis' work on the Dazed Digital site.
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