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Cabin Fever by Villanueva & Stone

Joe Villanueva and Katie Stone made their debut on Ben Trovato back in August last year when they shot Kayslee Collins in their Reborn story for Ben Trovato. Now They are back with another great editorial, with another breathtaking model: New face Wylie Hays at Next La.

Cabin Fever is a story of entrapment,” they say. “Youth vs Maturity, Good vs Evil, modern vs classic, amongst other struggles seen here our model Wylie plays the protagonist female who is youthful, fresh and modern.  Wylie also plays the antagonist who is more mature, cold, and intimidating.  The fresh girl breaks free from it all and runs away only to find her self trapped once again after a struggle for change.  A tale applicable and relatable to everyone on a different level and interpretation.

Joe says they were more focused on creating a visual story that is accentuated by differences in styling, and that they were not influenced too much by other visual references.”We wanted to convey femininity in a soft and a hard form. We love our industry but feel that while everyone is trying to innovate constantly and people do for the most part, it just doesn’t stick for one reason or another. We keep coming back to classic and safe things that we know work and they look damn good. This sort of represents a difficult cycle to break.

Stylists Elizabeth Watson and Crystal Ung from Liz + Crys says they always try to exude class in everything they do, but at the same time be able to make a bold statement. “We really loved this concept because it gave us a chance to do just that. Through mixing tailored pieces with statement pieces we were able to portray a classic look but at the same time give it a bit of edge. Villanueva & Stone’s Cabin Fever concept really inspired us to play with various emotions within the styling. We feel that it’s not just one person that makes the shoot a success but the entire team and this team was definitely one we were happy to be a part of.”

Joe and Katie agrees, and tells us of a great day shooting: “- This was our first time working with the styling team Liz and Crys.  They did a fantastic job with the styling, we loved their dynamic and taste. We have a great working relationship with Ashley the makeup artist for the shoot, sometimes we get our portfolios mixed up. We would work again with everyone in the team and encourage everyone to check out their work. Our work would definitely not be the same without the artists we collaborate with,” they say, before praising model Wylie: “- Wylie is a natural. She is a model who definitely knows what she is doing but makes it look effortless. She has a great face and piercing eyes, there is a quality to her that you don’t find in very many models. When she stands in front of the camera she knows exactly how to move her body and emote with her face, she gets it.

Credits
Photography by Joe Villanueva & Katie Stone (facebook | twitter | blog)
Styling by Elizabeth Watson & Crystal Ung of Liz + Crys
Makeup & Hair by Ashley Lueckenhoff using NARS makeup
Model - Wylie Hays @ Next LA