With its roots in New Orleans, artist representation agency FiftyTwo45 is working to make a mark on the creative media world.
FiftyTwo45 offers its talents to various industries such as lifestyle, fashion, tourism and media industries. The artists collaborate to produce content such as imagery and editorial material for use by these industries.
The agency was established in June with a website launch. Alongside the website is a blog and magazine titled The Quarterly, featuring original editorial content by the artists showcasing New Orleans talent and the city itself.
The agency’s roster includes photographers, bloggers, hair and makeup artists, fashion stylists, prop stylists and models with extensive repertoires and résumés. University film and media arts, and English sophomore Caroline Bergeronis also a FiftyTwo45 model.
“There have been a few instances where classmates may recognize my face from shoots,” she said. “But aside from those occasions, I feel like an average student.”
The south is not generally associated with a booming creative industry with many creative minds heading off to Los Angeles or New York City. However, New Orleans is quickly becoming a major cultural hub, which is what lured founder Elizabeth Perrin back home to the
Crescent City.
“I grew up in New Orleans but left when I was 17 years old,” Perrin said. “I modeled in Paris and New York, then moved back to New York a total of three different times and spent 15 years in Los Angeles. When I returned to New Orleans in 2013, I was constantly on the hunt for models and stylists; hair and makeup and I’d spend hours on social media to see who was in town and who was working and engaged in the fashion and media industries.”
Perrin knew quickly the Big Easy was the place for her agency to grow.
“Eventually it became obvious to me that New Orleans needed a creative agency, and I was in the right place at the right time with the right skill set to achieve it,” she said.
Bergeron said, with Baton Rouge’s close proximity to New Orleans, it’s easier to get experiences in both cities.
“It’s pretty ideal attending a school only an hour away from New Orleans and it’s definitely a unique job to have as a student here,” she said. “Some mornings I leave my house with both a full book sack for school and a duffle bag for modeling assignments, so I can rush after class to head down to the city for work.”
Agencies like FiftyTwo45 offer art and mass communication students a place to exercise their creative juices in a growing southern industry.
“In the recent past, Louisiana offered tax incentives for the movie industry which greatly helped all of us, particularly in New Orleans,” she said. “Not only did a group of talented film craftsmen move from Los Angeles and New York to New Orleans, providing a bona fide tax base for our city, as well as purchasing homes and remodeling them, but they also helped solidify ‘Hollywood South’ which in turn attracts national and international media. The movie stars and celebrities that come to New Orleans to work on films or television shows are the same ones that grace the cover of magazines and major
campaigns. In many ways, the zest for all things New Orleans has a positive synergy with its robust economy and that zest has been a major factor in the success of FiftyTwo45.”
For more information on FiftyTwo45, visit the company website or Twitter.