Gallery: In the '60s, Models Floated Through Paris in Bubbles
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The Victoria and Albert Museum in London recently named this photo, "Bubble Seine,” as the most iconic image in 100 years of fashion.
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Simone D’Aillencourt was one of Sokolsky's models of choice at the time of this shoot, and she is featured throughout the Bubble series.
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The series starts over the water and shores of the Seine River in Paris, eventually floating into the city streets.
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The bubble, made of plexiglass and aircraft aluminum, took ten days to manufacture.
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The only retouching in these photos, according to Sokolsky, was involved in removing traces of the 1/8th inch cable suspending the crane.
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The Bubble series is widely credited with kicking off a trend of high concept, artistic fashion shoots.
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Some shots are framed so that the cable isn't an issue, and Sokolsky maintains that with enough distance and a little backlight, even a direct shot of the cable will not necessarily be visible.
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Despite its surreal concept, the series is ultimately a fashion shoot, showing off some of the highest fashion of the time.
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Some of the clothes, especially the shoes, were damaged when the bubble was lowered too close to the water. Perhaps this contributed to the series eventually moving over dry land.
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The surreal imagery of a floating bubble was inspired by The Garden of Earthly Delights, a triptych by the early Netherlandish painter Hieronymus Bosch.
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Several of the frames feature bystanders simply gawking at the strange sight of the hovering orb, which Sokolsky worked into strong compositions.
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Sokolsky, D’Aillencourt, and crew stand beside the bubble (with suspension cable in full view) in Paris.
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One frame in the series is set against the other capitol city of fashion, New York
