Music and photography come together in the new coffee table book, Culo by Mazzucco. Highlighting the curves, the grooves, and the in-betweens of the female derriere, photographer Raphael Mazzucco shot subjects world round, with Interscope-Geffen-A&M chairman, Jimmy Iovine, and Sean “Diddy” Combs as Executive Editors. The book is out November 22nd, and that’s something to be thankful for. VMAN sits down with Mazzucco to talk about inspiration, butterflies, and, most importantly, culos.
-Noah Wunsch

VMAN How did you initially get into photography?

RAPHAEL MAZZUCCO I first started photographing musicians for Network Records. It was a small label out of Vancouver. They had the Smashing Pumpkins and Sarah Mclachlan. From there, I moved; I started shooting a lot in Milan and Amsterdam. I shot for this little Dutch magazine, which was pretty much my start in fashion photography. It’s been a natural progression since then. I come from a very editorial background. When I arrived in New York, I was shooting for clients like Ralph Lauren and Bergdorf Goodman. To balance my career I wanted to do more painting. I didn’t want to do it just to be in the studio alone though, I love photography. The hair, the make up, all the elements. I love the community of the shoot.
VMAN What were you doing before photography?

RM I’m from Vancouver. I’ve been an artist for 20 years. I left Canada at a very young age, 16. I was a soccer player and I moved to Europe to play, then came back to the States, played in the North American Soccer league. It was after that that I got into photography. I started shooting in Canada, and from there I moved to Europe for five or six years. I’ve been in New York for 15 years. I’m glad I ended up here.

VMAN You use painting in a lot of your photos. There’s a bit of Peter Beard in your work, the way you distort and your use of collage.

RM I guess there’s a similarity in the nature of collage, but I think Peter and I are so totally different. Many people influence every artist. I love what David Bowie said, “It’s great to get ideas from so many different people and try to combine that.” I have great respect for art in general. I don’t get negative on art. I think it should always be celebrated. Whether you appreciate an art piece or not, the art itself should be an appreciation of one thing.

Tapias is this beautiful Spanish painter. He’s a big inspiration for me. It’s not what I do, but it just moves me. It’s about feeling and observing, rather than the similarity. Whatever you get out of it, is what’s most important. Photography was my first love and combining it with painting just came naturally to me. I’m working on many layers. It could be poetry, or different photos, adding nature, making it raw and organic.

VMAN How do words collaged on a photo inform it as a piece of art?

RM I think the inspiration comes from people I’m shooting, or the location I’m shooting. What I loved about Culo, was working with people like Jimmy Iovine. The whole creative experience came from a different direction. Sometimes he would send me a song and try to inspire me that way. Or I’d travel and the inspiration came from there. Working with different people in a collaborative process is an inspiration. Working on the book was fun.

VMAN Another constant through out the book are the use of butterflies, is that a play on words? What is the symbolism?

RM That’s just an obsession. I think they’re beautiful. It’s sort of like an “X” and I love that. It’s something I always revisit.

VMAN In the Photographers Note for Culo, you talk about the inspiration for the book, your old PE teacher Mrs. Switch. Have you conversed with her since your adolescent daydreaming?

RM No. It’s funny you bring that up, though; people always ask me, and tell me, “you have to get a hold of her.”

VMAN Who is your representation of desire today?

RM I think my whole viewpoint changes depending on where I am, what I’m doing. I have a great appreciation for so many people. I find it hard to compare people in general. It’s like love. You never love a person the same way as another. I think my style is keeping everything very spontaneous. I like shooting in locations that aren’t set up. For Culo, the whole idea was to keep everything natural and playful and not try to force anything. Just make the subject relaxed and comfortable.

The whole idea from the beginning, when I first started working with Jimmy — it was never a set up thing where it would only be women in the book, it just sort of became that. Originally we thought we’d have male subjects as well, but as the process evolved, it didn’t make sense. It’s whatever came up. We’d go from there.

VMAN Why the ass? Why not the breasts or vagina?

RM The whole reason this book started was because Will.I.Am from the Black Eyed Peas, asked Jimmy Iovine for a million dollars to do a video in Brazil. He gave him the money, and Will came back with this video, with girls and their butts. Jimmy, when he saw that, he thought, I want to do a coffee table book like that! The whole inspiration started with the video and Jimmy’s idea.
Jimmy’s from Brooklyn, so he went to his old neighborhood and talked to an old friend. He was telling the friend about the book he was working on with me and his friend said, “Oh you’re doing a culo book!” And thats how the title came up. And we just ran with it.

VMAN How did Sean Combs get involved?

RM Sean came in and out of the whole process as art director. Jimmy thought he’d be wonderful to work with. We all work together in this natural and organic way. If something didn’t work we all agreed and moved on. We all pitched ideas. We’re all friends and it seemed like a really easy way to work.

With Sean too, the thing is he would talk to me about color, “Maybe this book needs more blue in it.” Wherever it came from, a song, colors, we’d make sections based on the suggestions.

VMAN How did this bond between the music industry and art industry come to fruition?

RM I think I’m very fortunate to have met Jimmy. He’s really the one who’s explored so many different worlds within our world. We’ve been working on the book for two years now and I’ve learned so much from working with him. Combining art, technology and music to develop whatever you’re doing. Make it into something that can really help people understand something they didn’t know or see before.

VMAN You refer to Culo as “an art, fashion, and pop-culture movement,” how is this breaking barriers on our idea of the butt?

RM I think it’s a celebration of female sensuality and sexuality. It should be approached in a way that perhaps is a celebration of art. Through my art I’ve always wanted to convey a really positive message. I’m not a tortured artist. I do things because I love them. I do it through the passion. I want to give off great energy.

VMAN Is Culo a fashion book or an erotic book?

RM I think it’s a music, art, fashion, pop culture book. Something that makes people aware of art.

VMAN In present times how can you draw the line between fashion photography and erotic photography?

RM I almost think erotic is a dream away. And I see fashion like that too, which is what makes it so fantastic! There are these photographers that can make an entity for the clothes in a shoot. Fashion and erotica are both extremely personal. It’s beautiful to see how each person portrays those two words. Art has so many different entities.

VMAN I gotta ask, who’s got the nicest culo?

RM I can’t really answer that, they’re all so uniquely different in so many ways! I relate mostly to the photograph and to the whole experience, rather than basing everything we’re doing on one culo. It starts there, but I think it’s about the art shows we’re doing.

VMAN What do you hope to do with Culo from here on?

RM We’re doing five shows. Saturday night we’re doing the book launch at the Sunset Marque in LA. That’ll be great because it’s the day before the music awards. Jimmy’ll have all his people there.
We already showed at the Tony Shafrazi Gallery in New York. After LA we’re going to Art Basel, having a show at the W Hotel. From there it’s italy, London, back to New York and then hopefully Australia.

VMAN Another book?

RM It’d be amazing if there was. It’s been a great project to work on.