Mar + Vin on Creating Ecosystems Through Timeless Imagery

Behind the Image is an ongoing MODELS.com series taking a more personal look at both established and emerging creative talent.

Mar + Vin (Marcos + Kelvin), Photographers

Hometown: We’re both from the Northeast region of Brasil, specifically Marcos, a small rural village in the state of Piauí, and Kelvin is from a small town called Valença in the state of Bahia.
Based: São Paulo, Brasil
Representation: SD MGMT

How would you describe your work? What’s your trademark?
We’re always trying to find the beauty within the ordinary. Also, seeking a fantastic element that elevates the image is a constant search. Our work permeates topics that are important for us as individuals, being political bodies, so topics like race, gender, sexuality, and political speeches are also really important points for us.

How did you both first discover your passion for photography, and what led you specifically into the world of fashion photography?
M: Sometimes, I ask myself if my photography is not an episode of hyper-focus that lasted way too long. I guess it is a way I found to condense all my little obsessions in one place. I used to draw sketches and croquis drawings all the time, and having a seamstress mother and grandmother definitely had an impact on me as a child. I learned to sew early and weave carnaúba fibers, so fashion and textiles were always there somehow. Now, it’s a tool that allows me to approach important topics, but I also love the possibility and freedom of simply not talking about anything if I want, though that’s absolutely rare.

K: I think the first time I saw a picture out of focus was when I was still a little boy and made the relation between it and my myopia. The fashion part of it came when I was at uni studying journalism, and I was too dreamy and wanted to tell stories besides reality. Fashion appeared to me as a possibility to reimagine the world around me.

What other jobs have you had?
M: My first job was at a call center, and it was actually the money from the job that allowed me to buy my first camera and start working professionally as a photographer.

K: I have worked with photography since I was 15, so this has been my life since then.

What inspires your creative process and influences your artistic vision?
First of all, we get inspired by people. By the sun and how the light touches things, creating shapes with shadows; by food and how different cultures experience the tastes of things; how each place uses the same ingredients in different ways; by smells and how they can teleport us to different times through olfactory memories. We’re very visual beings and we also try to use all of our senses to draw inspiration from things. We’re writing this from Seoul in South Korea, and we were with a dear friend of ours, Luciano Schmitz, an amazing creative director with a really sensible eye on things. We used to think we had different perceptions of things, and a couple of days ago, after walking throughout the city the whole day together, he said he was observing how we were always drawn to the same imagery, how the same kind of things catches our attention. Maybe that’s how our partnership works; it’s not only the differences as we used to think, but the convergence of similarities that helps create the magic of it all.

What do you love about what you do?
I love the idea that we can create entire new small worlds and ecosystems with living beings, and then we capture that, and it’s gone. The only place you’re going to find it is in those pictures.

Lighting plays a crucial role in creating mood and atmosphere in your work. How do you approach lighting in your shoots to enhance the narrative or emotion of the image?
It’s interesting that you chose to use the word ‘atmosphere’ because it’s the same word we use when discussing lighting. Light is the most important thing, honestly; if it’s off, everything is off, so we have to choose wisely how we want to approach this. Now, we’ve come to a point where we’re really interested in creating timeless pictures, we’re working a lot with deep, dramatic shadows and black and white. But we feel that the work people see is always how we were and not who we presently are. We have so much unreleased work that is going to show a different side of our visions. The last year was an important moment for us to develop even more of our desires, our techniques, and our practice, and I think all of that is being shown, slowly building our identity.

What have you watched/heard/read lately that has inspired you?
We’re diving more into the Latin American culture now and trying to exchange experiences from it. Brasil is vast, and being the only Portuguese-speaking country in South America made us feel some sort of separation from the region’s other countries. While we have diverse cultures, we also share many similarities. Additionally, we share a strong history of exploitation and colonialism, the consequences of which still linger in our region today. However, this shared history allows us to find strength in each other and build a community that makes us feel stronger together. After being finalists in the Latin American Fashion Award last year, we began forging closer relationships among Latin American creatives, aiming to strengthen connections within our community. There are many stories untold, just waiting to take shape. All to say that we recommend the book ‘Open Veins of Latin America’ by Eduardo Galeano.

Looking back at your journey so far, what do you consider to be the most significant milestones or projects that have shaped your artistic development?
We took far too long to realize that the work we were doing for magazines, which we poured a lot of our truth, stories, hard work, and financial efforts into, was not fully ours because, at the end of the day, it’s still a commissioned job. I love working with magazines but we asked ourselves, “What’s the thing that only we can do?” After realizing that, we decided to embark on a journey back to our roots and the core of what shaped our individual visions. We invited Maika Mano, a stylist and dear friend who has been creating fantasy with us since the beginning, and we spent two months traveling to our homelands doing what we love to do, create. The result was more than 400 pages of an upcoming photo book project that we are currently in the process of selecting and editing.

What’s one thing outside of your work that you would like people to know about you?
K: One of my other passions is to cook, especially traditional dishes from my homeland, Bahia.
M: I do like to experiment with a lot of different mediums; right now, ceramics and sculptures are the things I’m focusing on more.

Who do you think is one to watch?
Igi Ayedun, Nídia Aranha, Sttefone, Mika Safro, and Sheila Bawar.

Selected Work

VIVA VIOLA, Elle Brasil, 2022
M: I hate to ruin people’s expectations, but that shoot was the most delicate moment of my life. My mom, Maria, was battling cancer, and she lost the battle while I was there, in another country, shooting without Kelvin for the first time in our career because he had problems with his U.S. Visa. The whole experience felt surreal, and the time I was there, I felt detached from reality. This is the first time I have talked about this, and today, I still unsuccessfully try to detach those pictures from the whole experience, but I can’t. My mom really wanted me to go, but she couldn’t see the final image, which breaks my heart whenever I think about it. Now, looking back, I wonder if that was a reason for me to be so far away, and I guess there is?! Honestly, SHE was my Woman King, the most inspiring and beautiful soul I’ve ever encountered, and I miss her and honor her every day. If I’m doing this now, if my work goes a long way, it’s because of her, not just because she birthed me, but because she believed in me. She taught me everything I am and everything I know; she supported me even when I did not fit the molds of society growing up. Her hands produced beautiful and delicate things, and I try to do the same. I’m glad that those images touched so many people and impacted them, but this is what lies beneath it all.

Erykah Badu, Elle Brasil, 2023
Erykah is one of the most inspiring beings we’ve ever met; she emanates art energy all the time and was one of the first artists who had an interest in talking directly with us about the creation process of the shooting. I guess it isn’t common for a huge artist like her to get personally involved with the creation team regarding a magazine cover. She asked for drummers on set, which was an amazing experience. She also brought many suitcases with her own accessories to help create the universe we built. Marcos had the idea of the dove on the head and drew the image – just a couple of days before the actual shooting. It was our – officially – first time directing and filming in 16mm, which was great cause we also did it for good during the journey of our upcoming book. I really think our orixás were looking after us during this process cause it all looked like an actual ceremony; that’s why we put this name on the film. The scene of the drummers playing with her smoking the cigar was really strong; everyone on set was just astonished watching it all, and when it was over, everybody was screaming and applauding. It was divine. The day after the shoot, a message arrived on our WhatsApp group from her saying, “Best shoot I have ever done; everyone was very talented.” That’s something to remember.

The Language of Birds, 2022
This story holds a special place in our hearts as it marks the beginning of some sort of obsession/fascination we have with birds. It all started when Marcos stumbled upon a vinyl in a thrift shop called Cantos de aves do Brasil and brought it home. Seeking inspiration, we played the record one day and were immediately captivated. Inspired by the melodies and rhythms, we created an entire moodboard using only images of birds. The makeup drew from the vibrant colors of Brazilian birds; the clothes echoed their shapes, nails mimicked claws, and even the set design took cues from the distinctive lines and colors of a toucan’s beak.

VOO LIVRE, 2022
This story was inspired by botany, and this image specifically depicts a plant called paullinia cupana, commonly known as ‘Guaraná’. This plant is used to make Brasil’s most popular soft drink, which shares the same name. There’s also a legend about the creation of this plant: a deity who accidentally killed a beloved village child. Consumed by grief and guilt, the deity planted the child’s eyes in the forest, which then grew into the first Guaraná plant. The Guaraná seeds, resembling the child’s eyes, are believed to possess magical properties and energy-boosting qualities, making them a sacred symbol for the indigenous people of the Amazon.

BAHIA DE TODOS OS SANTOS, Elle Brasil, 2023
This image was inspired by one of the most important artworks called Operários by the modernist Brazilian artist Tarsila do Amaral.