Many creative careers started off as a hobby. Just like Hakim Satriyo’s. He has been in the fashion industry for a decade. If there’s one thing that sets Hakim apart from other creative practitioner, it’s his background in art. Growing up with his mother who loves art, he has always been interested in interior, architecture, music, fashion and fine arts. 

Back then, the though of becoming photographer didn’t cross his mind. Inspired by his mother, photography was his experimental approach to art. “My mum loves photography and she had this camera she brought with her everywhere,” said Hakim.

From there, the love of fashion slowly grew. It was unfortunate that he couldn’t go to fashion school because of a stigma that a man doesn’t belong to fashion. He chose to study industrial design at Lim Kok Wing in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia after contemplating between architecture and interior design. To compromise with that, the photographer incorporated fashion in all of his school projects instead, which resulted in the best student award. 

In between his studies, the grind never stopped. Hakim went as far as sewing his own clothes, doing hair and make-up on models and styling the shoot himself in an effort to build his portfolio. “I wanted to do something like Vogue editorial. I hired models from social media platform. It was so random. I even asked for portfolio. Total madness! But if you don’t try, you’ll never know,” said Hakim. His efforts paid off as he landed his first editorial campaign shoot from Malaysian brand Gallo by Thian in 2007.

“Every school holiday, I went back to Jakarta to do photoshoot and internship at magazine. Then I became an assistant stylist, wrote about fashion and I even went to show because I was so curious about what Jakarta’s fashion industry was like. I really wanted to dive into this industry but because my studies didn’t cover that, I have to find ways to be in the industry,” he said.

After graduating, Hakim returned to Jakarta in 2009 to pursue a career in fashion. “I completely left industrial design behind. I even received job offers in interior but I turned it down. My passion remains in fashion,” Hakim recalled.

At first, he wanted to create a fashion line but he pulled back because he was unsure of how things would work. Instead, he opted to continue photography. Then there’s the challenge of getting into fashion industry that everyone faces. According to Hakim, the tough part comes from the preference fashion editors have when it comes to photographers, stylists and make-up artists they work with, making the pool of talent circle around the same people. “I understand that people are more comfortable with others they’re familiar with. Politics will always be there. I am quite lucky because I know few people from my internship days.”

Regardless of how tough things are, Hakim preserves his integrity to never beg for a job. “We need people but we also have to maintain our principle. I’d rather show it through my project. You can’t force people to like your work. You’re bound to meet people you don’t like but you have to learn to appreciate them. I never take other photographers as my competitors and be like ‘I need to get this job so I have to slash the price.’”

Fortunately for Hakim, It didn’t take long for him to get noticed by the industry because he has been doing it since his studies. The breakthrough started from magazines like Marie Claire and Elle. “I went to shows, got to know more people and built my contacts. It’s a big industry. You don’t work alone. You’ll be working with editors, designers, stylists, make-up artists and even hairstylists. Often times, work came from circle of friends and words spread.” Establishing a good relationship and building chemistry with clients, stylists and make-up artists, even with models he is going to shoot, are crucial to thrive in the industry. “We have to trust them and let them do their thing, but at the same time, giving them feedback of what I think is missing,” Hakim added.

Aside from constantly producing work, he also put in critical observation into the work he’s done. After 3 years of portfolio building, he went through a process of character searching. It led him to find his identity as a photographer – a process that often times left out by creative practitioners.

As he laid out his body of works, Hakim realised it is dominated with black and white portraits, even though it’s mostly fashion. “I love portraits because it’s interesting to find out people’s characters. It’s actually easier because they are not models. There are extroverts, introverts, shy or confident in front of cameras, celebrities, politicians and many more. It’s up to me as photographer to capture a person’s charisma and character in front of the camera.”

There is a certain quality of Hakim’s work that exudes charm and mystery. It’s simple yet captivating, sometimes provocative in an elegant way. It’s the kind of quality that lands Hakim awards from Harper’s Bazaar in 2008 and Astonish NY magazine in 2010.

It’s fascinating to know that he only uses one light and the same camera he’s been using since the beginning of his career. That goes to prove that you don’t need equipments with hefty price tag to produce stunning work. 

It didn’t stop there. The journey brought him to another quest, an exhibition in Paris. “I had a lot of questions. I didn’t want to create an expected exhibition ‘oh it’s Hakim so it’s going to black and white.’ I need another blank canvas, like alter ego, for me to explore,” said Hakim. That led him to create his own fashion line, Teduh. The first collection, which featured his friend and first muse, Indonesian actress Adinia Wirasti, was shown at Fashion Nation 2017.

This type of exploration, in our opinion, adds layer of intellect to a creative practitioner. What’s even more remarkable is that he didn’t sell his collection in spite of high demand. “It’s a very personal project. Put it this way, it’s a project born from heartbreak. I can’t sell away things that hold a sentimental value,” said Hakim.

For him, there is no need to push himself to do things based on money. “I am ambitious when it comes to my own project.” Through Teduh, he made a statement that there are no boundaries to what kind of work he can produce. Now that Teduh had completed his mission, Hakim plans to turn it into a business in 2019.

Throughout the interview, the most valuable lesson we learn from Hakim is work has to come from heart, never compromise your integrity to please others and have faith in yourself. As the photographer said, “find yourself, find your character.”