castiglione/editing

Argh! I am in the midst of editing and writing the chapter on Achille Castiglione's studio and I am just a touch frustrated. This small warren of rooms is turning me upside down! I cannot figure where to take the reader first and so I can't seem to put the images in sequence. It will all come to me, right? I know there is a logical answer but at the moment I can't see it.
Ah well...don't worry...I'll keep working. The answer is just under my nose I am sure... This image is a little preview - just another one that has been edited away.
Have a lovely weekend friends!

just pretty/

shopping at castiglione/

It is hard to avoid. When I am shooting all these wonderful houses, in my mind I am kind of shopping. That lamp would be really nice in my living room, I will think. Or a sofa, painting, wall covering - you name it. I have a little (ok, it is big) laundry list of desired objects. Sometimes I even play the "If I could have one thing in this house what would it be?" At Achille Castiglione's studio, I would probably choose these packing crates. I know, this sounds crazy, but I just freaking love them! They are so sturdy and who knows what is in them! I would use them as a headboard for my bed - yes, they are that big. To be honest there are quite a few more things at Castiglione I would love to have, but my love for these crates knows no bounds...

achille castiglione/sneak peek

I just arrived in Milan late last night (really late...) and of course could not fall asleep. I was completely gripped by the idea that I don't have a good exterior shot of Achille Castiglione's Studio for his chapter. So after four hours of sleep I had to check. So that means you get a Castiglione sneak peek today!
Who knows if it is fatigue or what...I ended up feeling pretty good about what the chapter will be, but I am going to go and shoot some more exteriors if I can figure out a time to squish it in. My time in Milan is shooting everyday all day until I fly away on Monday. I'm sure I can find an extra hour, though...
Anyhow, I really love Castiglione's studio. It is jam packed to the ceiling with archives and collections. You can tell the people that worked here loved what they did. In the second image all those brown folders on the shelf actually hold glass negatives! Wish I could have looked through every single one!

note from milano/look up

Today was one of those days where life felt sublime. I shot Achille Castiglione's Studio for the new book. On the cab ride over this morning I was so excited I was spontaneously giggling in the back of the taxi. (The driver was not so amused.) I wish I could show you everything (I tweeted a couple, so sign up for that and see @lwillphoto ), but I definitely wanted to share these with you all. I spent a lot of time looking up because there were glorious things going on with the light on the ceiling. Isn't it just beautiful?!?! These reflections kept dancing around all day.

In the back room I couldn't help myself, I just had to lay down on the floor under the Taraxacum light. I had wanted to do this since I went on the studio tour during the Salone a couple of weeks ago. Of course the tour was packed so I resisted, knowing I would get my chance. I just layed there and looked around. It is amazing how you see things differently when you lay down on the floor in a room. I noticed all the beautiful old hardware underneath the desks and marveled at just how much they have stored to the ceiling. I also got a splinter in my jeans from the floor, but no one said there were no hazards to this kind of behaviour. Soooo worth it! 

Tomorrow I head for Vienna!