Ramblings

I was reading an interview the other day with photographer Harley Weir (apologies I can't remember the source), and she mentioned something about the lack of eroticism in photographs of men, and how she thought it was an interesting avenue to go down. I am starting to agree with her. I have never particularly been interested in mens fashion, but I am beginning to see the scope within working with men that I hadn't seen before. It seems as though theres more to be done, where as I find womenswear to be quite stale at times. For the past three years I've taken photographs of my former boyfriend (partly as he was the only willing model) in this way, whether consciously or not. There isn't much in the way of fashion going on in the images I suppose - not a fan of overtly 'fashionable' men - I'm more interested in what they wear day to day in the comfort of their own home or familiar company.

I am interested in this concept across both genders. I usually gain more pleasure from looking at the photographs of Moni Haworth following the dwellers of East london squats than Steven Klein shooting Naomi Campbell in a couture dress, say. And I'd much rather see hotty Lara Stone in a plain white vest and some cut off Levi's than a Louis Vuitton number. Not anti-fashion per-say, as I feel like this is a contradiction in itself. Just more real, and more light hearted.

During my final major project I've had a battle with myself about what I want to achieve from it and how I want my brand to be perceived. Its been slightly schizophrenic. But thinking about this has made me realise what I want from it. I think the best work always comes from within. If I think about what I really like, it isn't fashion so much as images. I love looking at images, creating them, whatever. Whether something has a french seam, or is 'cut on the bias', I couldn't give a crap.

In my images for Little Death, I want to take a leaf out of Moni's book and say fuck all this, just have fun with it. When speaking to my model about the shoot, I linked her to Moni's website (www.johnnysbird.com) and she replied 'ahh amazing, its like fancy dress! I have loads of stuff we could use!' which is exactly the kind of reaction fashion should bring out in someone. Whether something has a darker meaning underneath it all, in the end, doesn't matter.

I have also been perving on the work of Lina Scheynius, (bordering on obsession with her photographs) which are so delicate and raw, often eroticised. I'd also love to channel her work within mine, bringing some sophistication to the mix but without making it look forced.

This is ultimately where my passion lies (took a while to find it). Creating images. The product designing and making has been a struggle for me, as I just want to get down to communicating it to the world. Obviously in the real world, being given a product that suits my taste to communicate is wishful thinking, so this is something I need to work on - adaptability.

Here are some images that 'inspire' (don't like that word) me...

Yeah, yeah, most of them are draped over some sort of furniture. But this is what I like - something real and raw but also beautiful and dare I say it, erotic. Something a little off centre, ethereal in the real. (Coming out with some right garbage now I know, but Its making sense in my head)

My plan so far for the photoshoot is this:

Raw, Delicate, Real, Natural, Beautiful, Erotic, Ethereal in the real, Day in the life of,  Humour.

The model: 

Emily. Found her partly on Facebook, although I'd seen her around a few times before (Leeds is a small world). She is perfect for what I'm after really. She now has dip-dyed hair which I really like, and a nose piercing. And she doesn't look like a 'high fashion' model or anything, just your average (albeit very pretty) girl, who likes dressing up! perfect! 

I think this will appeal to my target market pretty well, too. A lot of my competitors, although they do it well, are a little more heavy going and serious. Fleet Ilya is pretty slick, more adult. Gabriella Marina Gonzalez has gone down the more conceptual route. My customer will have a lot in common with my model. My plan is to photograph her in her surroundings, in her room (or maybe a staged version of). Her messing around with different outfits, in a fairly natural manner, but also looking beautiful in them (in order to sell these blasted things!). This will communicate to the customer that these pieces can be integrated into your everyday life. I think my customer, being creative and individual, will appreciate and understand this. I like to think they already have a collection of unique and interesting pieces that they picked up in thrift stores and from new young designers, of which they will add to with mine. 

I realise I could be taking too much away from the products themselves here (getting carried away as usual) but by stripping it down a little in that lovely Lina Scheynius way, I'm hoping they will shine. I'm also planning to do a more straight forward studio type shoot which will show the products more clearly, particularly for the website. 

There are talks of a possible 'video lookbook', too. I had in mind a series of GIFs (short clips of a video) for the website, but maybe a short video would work. 

My ideas certainly aren't new or ground breaking, however within the context I think it will work.