Biography

Stéphane Kossmann was born in Tours (France) of Franco-German parents. He learned the secrets of the profession by working in a photo-processing laboratory, before enrolling on a course at the "Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie” in Arles. There, he experienced a renewed enthusiasm and appreciation for photography and was also introduced to world-renowned photographer, Peter Knapp. This was a turning point in his career which led him to work for “7 à Paris” magazine. In 1989, the magazine appointed him to cover the Cannes Film Festival.

For the past 20 years, Kossmann has been covering the red carpet -”the steps”- initially for “7 a Paris” and later for “Cinephage” magazine by taking black-and-white shots of celebrities and directors caught off-guard. During the festival in 2004 and 2005, several of these photos could be seen on 100-square-meter posters emblazoning buildings around Cannes as a token of appreciation for Kossmann’s work by the mayor and the city of Cannes.

And 110 more — of Pedro Almodovar, Sharon Stone, Sean Penn, Nicole Kidman, and Robert de Niro — were contained in a just-released book, “Observations sur les marches a Cannes,” produced by Sophie Lepeu. “You always see the same red carpet photos: the stars posing for the camera and the carpet behind. I wanted to capture the actor’s humanity, their faces and eyes,” says Kossmann, who uses the same type of camera, a wide aperture and no flash. The results are startling because of Kossmann’s whisper-soft technique and the way he brings out poignant beauty without ever retouching his pictures.

Influenced by the classics of photography and painting, Stéphane Kossmann plays with the light, the lines and forms of the human body, always looking for beauty. His unique style and discriminating ability to capture the decisive moment, expression, and emotion of his subject has earned him an international reputation and has been the subject of several exhibitions (the Paris Month of Photography organized by “La Maison Europeene de la Photographie, exhibit in Madrid of 24 pictures at the FNAC building. giant exhibit in Deauville with 120 portraits displayed in the city streets).

Kossmann’s portfolio of work includes 4 series: “Observations”, “Cross”, “Duo” and “Time”. He has also done editorial work for Elle, Vogue, Marie-Claire, Gala and Studio. Counted among his advertising clients are: Chopard, Nike, Harry Winston, Ralph Lauren and Galeries Lafayette.

This year, Stéphane Kossmann is set out to fulfill one of his lifelong passion projects; a photography festival in his hometown of Luberon. The festival will take place at the end of July 2009 and 30 photographers (Bernard Plossu, William Daniels, Jean Michel Berts...) will be exhibited. This year’s godfather will be the great Peter Knapp.
For more information regarding the festival please visit: www.lesnuitsphotographiquesdepierrevert.com.

Stéphane Kossmann shares his time between New York and France continuing his freelance career in his quest for sincerity.