Mirka Laura Severa makes snowmen models in fashion shoot for SZ Magazin

“Usually the model is freezing on shoots… this time it was the other way around,” says photographer Mirka Laura Severa on her latest project for SZ Magazin. Asked to concept a fashion shoot for down jackets, Mirka looked for an unusual way to showcase the products, and came up with the idea to use snowmen as models. The result is a hilarious series of images depicting well-dressed snowpeople frolicking, posing and taking selfies in a winter wonderland.

“As the shoot had to be in October, the only way to get a location with snow was to go on top of a glacier,” explains Mirka, “so we went to shoot in Hintertux, Austria for three days. Every morning we took the first gondola up 3250m, and took the last one down at the end of the day.”

So, what we really want to know is, did she make the snowpeople herself? “Absolutely! That was the most exciting part of this project, building snowmen for something serious! I made precise sketches in advance (see below) as I wanted to have different characters, like the expedition guy, the chiller, etc.”

Mirka then worked with a stylist on the shoot, which was physically taxing to say the least. “It’s f**ing cold, -15 degrees, and the sun is intense. Also you notice the oxygen level is different, so there were phases where I became slow or dizzy, or had laugh attacks. We definitely had fun up there.”

“I wasn’t really aiming for a certain aesthetic, I just hoped the idea would work,” she says. “I like the surreal twist in the images, a kind of disturbing humour. It was an experiment, as we didn’t know the circumstances of nature. Will it rain, will there be a snowstorm? That was the only thing I couldn’t influence.”