Erwin Olaf and his haunting investigation into human loneliness

The fashion photography of Erwin Olaf (j'adore him) has always displayed a taste for the mysterious, unsettling and surreal. Whether he is mutilating aristocratic beauty in his Royal Blood series, creating scenes of sexual tension in iconic works such as Schoolgirl or shooting androgynous models puking up clutches of pearls, he never fails to challenge notions of beauty and evoke a universe of moody, air-brushed perfection that is one-part Edward Hopper and two-parts David Lynch. In the exhibition Recent Work, currently being exhibited at London's Hamiltons Gallery, Olaf explores existential angst and isolation against the backdrop of dimly-lit and slightly sinister 1950s hotel rooms in his Hotel series, and investigates race and fashion in Dusk and Dawn. Dazed stepped into the half-light to find out more…