Before there was Instagram, before there was Pinterest, before there was something called an influencer, there was Scott Schuman.
Better known by his professional nameĀ The Sartorialist, Schuman began photographing street style back in 2005, at a time when blogs were more of an anomaly than that thing everyone you know seems to have. With a love for fashion and a measured, detail-oriented eye, Schuman quickly made a name for himself as street styleās authorityāthe guy you wanted (perhaps needed) to be photographed by.
His images are arresting and raw, and act as a time capsule of fashion through the years; from the alleys of New York (his home city) to the streets of Milan (his favourite city), a Sartorialist photo tells a story, less of its subject and more of what its subject represents: a moment in time, a narrowing-in on the zeitgeist.
His large, beautiful photo books are a great way to immerse oneself in his work over the decades, and his first three collections showcase a wide range of people and places. But for his fourth, Schuman decided to narrow his focus:Ā The Sartorialist IndiaĀ dives into the fashion of one of the worldās most populated countries to showcase just how much diversity exists in one destination.
āI wanted to shoot in one place and show the differences, the compare and contrast within that one place, and India is a place that definitely has thatāthereās such a wide range of different lifestyles and income levels and religious groups and castes and different things,ā Schuman says, seated on a couch at the Shangri-La Vancouver just before an intimate lunch hosted by local concept shopĀ Secret Location. He also wanted to showcase what he saw, after multiple trips over multiple years, as the real Indiaānot just the yoga and the poverty that movies and books always seem to focus on. āWhen I was selling the book and showing it to different publishers they would say, āWell, I donāt really get it. Some of these kids look like New York kids,āā Schuman recalls. āAnd I said, āThatās exactly the point.āā
As someone who travels for a living, Schuman understands the importance of self-care. Here are a few of the ways he keeps himself nourished.
On travel
āI prepare for it. I know when Iām travelling, so as much as possible as Iām leading up to a big trip, I try to work out and feel good physically when I goāso then when Iām there, I donāt worry about it. Usually when Iām travelling on a serious photo trip I donāt have time to exercise because we get up so early and Iām very focused, so I usually have to try to make sure I feel good when I get there. And then after that I find itās more fun to live the experience of being there, to eat things I wouldnāt typically eat at home. Itās part of the fun of doing a book on India or going to France: the chance to actually be there. If I was as strict there as I am at home, it wouldnāt be nearly as fun, and I donāt think I would learn as much from the situation. So for me itās a lot of preparing.ā
On exercise
āI go to Equinox in New York. Itās very close to my apartment.Ā
As you get older, everything slows down a little more, and itās harder to get to where you want to physically, but Iām always trying out new things; I lift more, but Iām doing more different kinds of cardio. Mainly the exercise and self-care is really to make my job easierāitās a very physical job when Iām out walking all day or moving on a bike, so I find the time. And I work out very early, Iām usually at the gym by 6:15, 6:30, something like that, and thatās really my time. I donāt necessarily rush, I enjoy it, I listen to sports talk radio on my headphones, I do my exercising, my stretching. And thatās really my time before the day starts to take care of myself.ā
On listening
āBecause Iām a New Yorker and a Yankees fan, I listen to this guyĀ Michael KayĀ who is the Yankees announcer on TV. A lot of times what Iāve found in my career creatively is: I look at photographers, obviously, but I like to try to find things in other fields where I can hear what theyāre doing and think, āHow does that apply, or how can I tweak that or turn that upside down to apply it to what I do?ā So Iāve listened to sports talk radio for a long time, and I love sports; Iām not a super fanatic, Iām curious about the things that are going on, but Iām not crazy about it. But even the concept of sports talk radio is very similar to the concept of doing Instagram, doing any kind of social mediaĀ [editorās note: Schuman hasĀ 1.1 million Instagram followers]. With a good one, the person has the strength to really say their opinion, and then itās about interacting with their audience. And the way they format things, the way they approach a subject, is always very interesting to listen to, so in some ways Iām listening to it for the sports, and in other ways Iām listening to it for the abstract inspiration.ā
On food
āMy wifeās vegetarian; I might not be totally vegetarian yet, and I donāt know if Iāll ever be totally vegetarian. She says itās more āplant-based.ā So Iām maybe 90 per cent vegetarian.ā
On sweets
āMy big problem is sweets. I used to put a pack of sweetener in a little espresso, so Iāve really challenged myself to reset my taste buds to not need so many sweets.Ā
My only exception is I like a Campari: Campari spritz, Campari soda. I just like the taste of Campari, and itās from Milan, my favourite city. It has a nice feel, and itās a nice end-of-the-day drink. So right now Iām saving my sweet tooth for Campari.ā
On fashion
āI think Nikeās doing great work; Iām buying a lot of Nike sneakers to go with my Prada pants. Iām going very kind of minimal right now, Iām playing with this idea of uniform.Ā
So for me right now itās less about brands. But I think Valentino is doing a great job in menās and womenās; Dries Van Noten is always interesting, though itās been a little trickier since heās been bought; and Prada. I think my favourite two right now are Prada and Valentino.ā
On skincare
āI use lotion, which is about all I do. I use Kiehlās.Ā
But I donāt even really use soap very much; I feel like it dries me out. I do very little, but I drink very little, I donāt smoke, Iāve never done drugsāso I feel like my best thing is prevention. I donāt put a lot of bad stuff in, so I donāt really do a lot of things. I think my skin feels good for my age, but I think the not smoking helps more than smoking and putting lotion on or doing a million treatments. Even though I have an outdoor job where I have to walk around a lot, I donāt really love the heat, so I try to stay out of the sun as much as possible.
Good sunscreen and a hat.ā
On aging gracefully
āMy big inspiration is Armani. Have you ever seen pictures of Armani? Even at 80 he looked 60. Now itās finally hit him, but heās like 85 now; but up until 80 he was in great shape. And I really think he made a deal with the devil: he owns all of his company, creative genius, billionaire, great shape...I donāt know what kind of deal he made, but itās working for him. So I look at those pictures of him, and itās nice because he really hit his creative stride right around this time when he was 50 and 60Ā [editorās note: Schuman just turned 52]. People look at people who are 50 and 60 and think, āOh, theyāre falling apart now,ā and that was one of his best periods; one of his best periods physically, one of his best periods creatively and financially, business-wise. I never worry about how to look younger or how to try to be younger, thatās not even physically possible. But you can try to figure out how to grow old more gracefully, more successfully. So for me, Iām always looking at older people. āHowād that guy do it?ā There are three guys I look at a lot: Armani, this guyĀ George CortinaĀ whoās kind of a fashion stylist star, andĀ Noboru Kakuta, heās Japanese and very chic, takes great care of himself, in great shape. Those are the guys who I look at and say, āOkay, I want to grow old like them.āā
On inspiration
āIām doing my [next] book on menswear now, and one of the little musings that Iām writing about is that it doesnāt always have to be perfect to be inspiring. Iām writing about a photograph and how I love the guyās shirt and the way he does his neckerchief, and the colour combination and everything. I love the upper halfāand I canāt stand the shorts. I would never ever wear those, theyāre Versace-printed horrible things, but I love the photograph. Itās very inspiring to me. I just choose not to look at the part or care about the part I donāt like. And I think itās a great way to be; itās a very selfish way, but in that way selfishness is very positive. Iām making it about what I can get out of it as opposed to about making that guy right or wrong.ā
This interview has been edited and condensed.