Redefining Cool

Faisal Mohammed has had a prolific, and robust start to his career. Born in Ghana, at twelve he moved to the United States. Faisal’s interest in photography took off while studying in Georgia at SCAD (The Savannah College of Art and Design). While in school Faisal began to shoot album covers and editorials, later becoming a Marketing Director in Atlanta, starting his own creative agency going by the pseudonym Revivethecool, and touring with DRAM. After setting his sights on a bigger market, Faisal took root in New York. Now Faisal is trying to revive the cool through images and video.

What exactly does that mean? Has cool really gone away? Is Faisal the one to bring it back? Who is he to decide what cool is?

“Revivethecool is a world of its own. I wanted to be bigger than a photography platform. I didn’t just build up Faisal photography, I wanted to embody a creative vision instead of putting out images. I pushed that agenda onto everything I was doing. We make images that inspire awe and wonder. I love images and telling stories and this is a platform that can showcase it through a very specific lens. I have a stylized look and want to create wonder for the audience. It means I have to constantly reinvent and rethink the concept of cool. I like using new technologies while combining different mediums/artforms.  Cool is very subjective, through the ages the concept of cool changes, so I like being able to see cool through an open lens. It’s nothing too specific.” Faisal understands that his version of cool is not all encompassing, and that the visuals he creates today might be blasé tomorrow. This is why he always pushes himself to be better with each project.

“Everything I’ve done before I’m proud of, but I think everything else is a bit of a one up from what I do. Every new shoot is a bit scary for me, I always try to one up myself and how do I reinvent and make myself different. There is no specific project, everything stands within its own.”

When working with artists or musicians, Faisal takes their prior work into account.

“What hasn’t this person done before? If it’s not new then there’s no reason to be doing the work.” Part of what makes Faisal such a complete image maker is his commitment to every stage of the craft.

“I always try to tell a story, and figure out how we can make that memorable. I divide projects into four parts.”

1. What is the story I’m trying to tell, the message how relevant/impactful will it be
2. The lighting, how can the lighting communicate this message.
3. The styling, how will the outfit fit into the greater vision.
4. The props, sets, etc., which enhance and polish the rest of the image.

“When we’re thinking about light, before it used to be more strobe. Now we’re working in an era where motion is so important. Broncolor has become one of the main lighting manufacturers and companies that create lighting modifiers and heads that are good for stills and motion.”

Many of Faisal’s references come from motion advertisements, so there is a strength to being able to match that with HMI fixtures and broncolor modifiers. One main benefit of having continuous lighting is that he can see what his image will look like immediately, and each change is rendered in real time, without needing as many test shots. 

While staying home over the past few weeks, Faisal has continued to create, using this time to photograph one object a day. From candles to fish to pieces of paper, Faisal looks to stay sharp and continue to hone in on his look on any given day.

Follow Faisal on Instagram @revivethecool and at his website revivethe.cool.