Background
Egidio Scaioni was born in 1894 in Italy (possibly Milan).
Egidio Scaioni was born in 1894 in Italy (possibly Milan).
An accountant in Milan, Scaioni moved to Paris in the late 1920s to photograph couturier collections and establish his career. In 1929 he formed a partnership with John de Forest Thompson, who took over the business aspects of Scaioni's work. He later opened a studio in London and began publishing books with the firm Editions de Varenne. His images were published in various fashion magazines as well as Time and Fortune, among others.
A painter as well as a photographer, Scaioni also developed formulas for perfumes.
Working with an 8 x 10 view camera, Scaioni produced silver contact prints, using his own chemistry. He employed directional lighting and Art Deco backgrounds in his fashion work and set up distinctive stylized poses, often in silhouette.