Summer 2019

Old Masters of the
Auto Garage
By Gabriel Curry
Freddy Fabris is a
professional photographer
whose
work ranges from
commissioned
advertising to fine
art.
Growing up as a
child of two professional
dancers, Freddy spent time
in New York and Argentina before
making Chicago his home. He was
accompanying a friend to drop off
a car at an independent auto shop
when he was struck by the artistic
possibilities the space had to offer.
After getting the consent of the
shop owner, he assembled a group
of models. He chose men whom he
estimated could be believable both
in the role of auto mechanic yet also
possessed an air of romantic nobility
of the kind that might have appeared
at home within a classical painting.
“Because of my painting background
I’ve always wanted to re-create classic
masterpieces, but I knew that
in order to create something that
would create a new dialogue on an
old subject, there had to be a twist,”
Fabris says. “How could we tell these
stories in a new context? How could
we bring a little humor yet respect
and homage the originals?”
The series of photographs that resulted
from this project has brought
smiles to virtually everyone who has
seen them. Some of the images are a
playful riff on a famous masterpiece,
while others are simply portraits in
the spirit of a Rembrandt with no
specific painting in mind. The characteristic
lighting and tonality of the
photos, combined with the special
presence of the carefully chosen models,
combine to sell the notion of fine
art that Fabris so skillfully achieves.
Images and content courtesy of Fabris
Photography. Fabris’ quotation is from
an article in Popular Mechanics.
4
5