Camera Roll is an interview series where we glimpse into the current moment via the mundane and the ordinary — the life documented and forgotten, lived through our phones and beyond.
Visual researcher Giulia Lanaro describes her work as the research of attitudes. When she rifles through her vast collection of books and magazines, she looks for the evocative sidelong glance, the insouciant styling move, the mood of an interior shot. She compiles these images into mood boards for clients but it’s her personality and point of view that comes through in the selection of images — that, to her, is the mark of successful image curation. We spoke to Giulia about taking style inspo from aughts paparazzi shots, working from home with kids, and photographing summer vacations in magical places.
what kind of phone do you have?
iPhone 12, I think? I’m gonna keep it as long as it works! There are two things in life that I couldn’t care less about: cars and phones.
can you describe your lock screen?
My lock screen is always a picture of my kids! I change which one sometimes but it’s always them. Right now, I have a photograph of them that I took this summer while we were on vacation in Paris. Achille, the bigger one, is carrying Tito, the little one, on his shoulders and they both have big smiles on their faces. I love it.
How long do you typically spend on your phone in a day?
Unfortunately, a lot, since I work with it. But I force myself not to use it while I am with the kids. I don’t use it while we are having lunch or dinner together. In general, while I am spending time with other people, I don’t want to use it.
what is your morning routine like?
I wake up at 7:00 am and do some stretching. I’ve been needing it since I turned 30. Then I have breakfast with the fam. Soon after that, their Dad brings the kids to school (if he’s not traveling around the world — my partner is an architect and it happens that he has to travel; for example right now he has a worksite in Lisbon) and I go for a walk in the hills near my home. I do that everyday. I simply need it to start the day in the better way. Afterwards I do some yoga and then take a shower. Then I am able to check email and start to work.
where are you right now?
In bed :)
what’s the last thing you googled on your phone?
“Elisabetta Canalis Paparazzi 2000” Lol. Today I came across a picture on Instagram of her grocery shopping in early 2000, and she looked amazing! She was wearing black Nike Shox sneakers, green cargo pants, and a minimal black sweater. I thought it was a cute outfit.
Tell us a little bit about your background. Where did you grow up and what was it like?
I was born in Bassano del Grappa. My dad is an incredible architect, and a wise and super kind man. My mom is the sweetest and chicest person in the world and the most adventurous! I have to thank her for my love of travel. Then there are my two sisters: Anna, the eldest, who’s the most intelligent person I know, and Ilaria, the youngest, who is the funniest person on this planet. I love them immensely!
I’m in the middle, just like Malcolm. I love my family, I owe them everything.
when did you get your first phone, and what do you remember about it?
I got my first phone when I was 15 years old. I was thrilled, obviously, and probably the last one in my class to have one. It was a Siemens and it was so small I could barely text!
you’re a visual researcher. what does that look like?
My job is literally research of images. I create mood boards with them, or sometimes my clients need content for newsletters or social media, or just archival image research. It depends.
All the images that I find are from my personal archive of books and magazines. On a typical day of work I am digging into my books and the house is submerged in them! I leave them everywhere when I am searching for images for a client . . . but then I put everything in its place, I swear :)
how did you first get into visual research?
I started my first job as a visual researcher around 2013. I wrote a column for an online fashion magazine called Pig, where I talked about the return of ’90s fashion trends. It was then that I decided I wanted to continue working with mood boards and images.
what advice would you give to someone who wants to do what you do?
Many people asking me for advice but I didn’t follow a precise route to get where I am now.
I think that for this job, it’s important to show your own perspective and personality. It’s not just collecting images. You have to find a way to express what’s on your mind and if it’s interesting, it will work!
you describe your work as “research of attitudes.” what does that mean to you?
What captures me about an image is what it expresses. This is what I look for when I do image research on my own: a penetrating gaze, a provocative grimace, cool styling, warm interiors. Anything that can show me more than just an image, that can tell me a story I can imagine. For example, I love photos of bodies or people viewed from the back. You have to imagine what’s in front and this fascinates me and makes me dream about different lives.
What are your days like?
Too short!
How do you make time for your personal life and strike the balance between work and free time?
I don’t think I am good at it yet. Sometimes I tend to procrastinate. It’s not easy working from home with kids, but I try to have a routine — working more in the morning in order to have free time to spend with the kids in the afternoon.
favorite thing you’ve come to possess in the last year?
Three lamps by Benno Premsela, in three different measurement, that I’ve found on Vinted, and a beautiful extendable table by Silvio Coppola for Bernini, from the ’70s, for our dining room.
We’d love to hear about how you capture and remember moments of your life.
I simply take photos of the moments I want to remember, because I love images :)
Usually it happens when we are on a trip, especially on summer vacations, where we have time to travel to magical places together. This summer we spent a month in Bruxelles, traveling between Belgium and Holland, and I collected a lot of photos, mostly of architecture, art, and my kids.
what’s your stylistic approach to taking photos on your phone?
Lately I like to take picture holding my phone horizontal. That way, the picture looks like a frame from a movie and it’s more romantic to me.
What are your favorite accounts you follow on social media?
sportsmans__paradise/olivierchatenet/solitudeofravens/organiclab.zip/gettyimagesfanclub/butterfly____effect/sshftoptplus/jitjindar
favorite apps on your phone?
Vinted! I use it a lot — too much! I’ve always love vintage clothing since I was a young girl but now that I have the ability to discover brands through my archives of fashion books it’s even more thrilling because it’s easier to find rare but also forgotten pieces and bring them back :)
how are you navigating your children’s relationship to technology?
We wanted to wait as much as possible before giving a phone to our eldest son, Achille. He’s 12 years old now and since he’s starting to go out alone with friends, I let him use a phone when he’s away from home. But he’s not allowed to use it during the day.
More generally, what’s been inspiring you?
Women supporting women.