The unclothed body is an amazing art form, so changeable with pose, light, mood, the energy of the day, and the relationship between the model and the photographer – so many variables, which make a challenging, yet possibly magical photograph.
We live in a society where we are often discouraged from being “naked” to the world around us. We adorn ourselves with manufacturers’ logos, auto insignias, job titles, and the four walls in which we live. These serve to define us, and I think on many levels we are satisfied and may prove welcoming of this definition. But is that really who we are? What about our deeper selves – our “naked” selves – that which makes us weep with abandon, laugh out loud, or that which gives us reason to rise each morning? What are our passions? What is it that makes us vulnerable? Can we share these parts of us?
Obviously for most to be literally naked before the lens is to be vulnerable. I believe there is a truth inherent and unavoidable when we shed our clothes. It is my goal to capture and share that truth.
There have been cultures who felt that the camera steals the soul. There may in fact be some truth to that depending on your definition. I have no intention of stealing anyone’s soul, but I do hope to get a tiny glimpse!
I believe that creating art comes through us – we are merely the vechicle. Sally Mann speaks of the magic of getting a good photograph as “a moment as fleeting as the touch of an angel’s wing.” Robert Doisneau said “If I knew how to take a good photograph, I'd do it every time.” Indeed, there is the risk when clicking the shutter that nothing of substance will be there, but when all becomes aligned – magic happens!