PSYLO, Pandawa Beach, Bali

Nothing we see or hear is perfect. But right there in the imperfection is a perfect reality.” ― Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind

Apart from inspiring Psylo’s Winter 2017-18 collection, the shooting day for the collection was an excellent Zen practice. For a Zen-inspired collection, Psylo’s concept was to take a more minimal approach. The location needed to be a gentle backdrop, which would resonate Zen’s appreciation for nature. Also, as a Psylo follower, you might already know Psylo’s attraction to enigmatic places (like our SS17 photoshoot location). So for the shooting of Psylo’s FW17-18 collection - the Psylo team was looking for a location which could manifest it all.

The location chosen was ‘Pantai Pandawa’, Pandawa Beach in Indonesian. Located on the Bukit Peninsula, this fine, one-kilometer coastal stretch, is a gem in Bali’s crown of gorgeous, natural beaches. This beach used to be locally referred to as the ‘Secret Beach’. Both because it is ‘hidden’ - behind large, carved limestone cliffs.

But also because it was only officially opened to the public 5 years ago. The cliffs of limestone and the black coral used to be excavated for construction. The deserted mine has left exposed layers of black, white and green moss - also resonating Psylo’s AW17-18 color palette.

The concept for the shoot was to create a Zen aesthetic balance: between light and darkness, day and night. The plan was, being inspired by Zen & Martial Arts, to shoot dynamic poses of models, half during the day and a half at night. Combined with lighting and smoke, this was to create extended, dramatic shades over the backdrop of Pandawa’s cliffs.

So on the morning of the shooting day, the team left to the beach in high spirits. But it was a stormy day, traffic caught us, and the Psylo team arrived (not so) fashionably late. With little hours of daylight left and the cloudiest skies, the battery for the lighting equipment went almost flat. However, Psylo’s motto is ”‘Necessity is the mother of invention” after all! Problem-solving on the spot, the team used car lights to create that extra effect. The result is some magical shots, we look forward to be sharing more of with you.

Love, the Psylo Team ღ

Watch behind the scenes - Psylo’s FW17-18 inspired by Zen: