After an internship in Paris at the famous Art Partner photographer’s agency, Mehdi began to think about his roots and soon started to meet inspiring designers from Africa. In 2013, Africa was not marketed the same way that it is now in the art and fashion field. “Because I am kind of stubborn, I thought, I am going to work with them because nobody else is!” 

He signed up for a fashion photography course at Parsons in Paris (later renamed Paris College of Art), which is where I came into his story in my role as professor of photography. There were a lot of very talented photographers at the school, but Mehdi really stood out for his passion and drive to succeed and to learn all aspects of the business of fashion. He even surprised me with how quickly he began to gain really high-caliber clients. 

I remember him telling me nervously that he had just been commissioned to photograph the French Supermodel Noemie Lenoir for the cover of a magazine. I was especially impressed by his INFRA menswear story that he shot on the outskirts of Paris inspired by the infra-red photographs of Richard Mosse who covered the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo.