RAW
Check out the RAW exhibit at the Minoru Cultural Centre: 7700 Minoru Gate, Richmond, BC
Hours: Mon-Fri: 9:00am-9:00pm and Sat & Sun: 10:00am-5:00pm
I am so pleased to announce that my personal project RAW is being exhibited in a community art gallery space at the Richmond Art Gallery (RAG) at the Minoru Cultural Centre.
Years after I started this project (and after delays caused by COVID), I finally took the bull by the horns and submitted my proposal to the RAG for consideration. It was accepted for their community space in the upper rotunda of the Cultural building and will be on display from September 14-October 10, 2022.
RAW
definition: not having undergone processes of preparing, dressing, finishing or refining
Influencers. Beautiful, stylish people…
They are the images of perfection that we aspire to in our own lives; perfect skin, beautiful silky hair, ideal weight, stylish wardrobe, etc. However, in a world filled with gloss, glamour and social media ‘perfection’ we sometimes lose sight of the real, raw person inside. Models (and “influencers”) are made-up, dressed-up and retouched into the best, shiniest and most perfect versions of themselves. What if we saw them, as we see ourselves everyday, in the morning mirror? Fresh out of bed, no make-up, no hair styling, wearing a rumpled t-shirt or nothing at all?Inspired by the artwork of noted portrait photographer Peter Lindbergh (who famously shot the unretouched 2017 Pirelli calendar), the notion of working in a blatantly raw, unretouched format was refreshing change from the traditional fashion/beauty photography and retouching I create everyday.
In this personal project, I explore the raw, unfinished side of portraiture; documenting the real, raw person under all the makeup, hairspray and fancy clothes. Undone. Unmade. Unretouched. Capturing the authentic human found under the layers of polish, photoshop and social media lens.
Social media, the influencers, and an ever growing need for “perfectionism” is impacting us globally, in all areas of our lives. It’s insidious and can deeply effect our personal self-worth… I embarked on this project to show the beauty of the human in my lens; not the stuff being put on their faces / hair or the clothing they wear. It is my goal to share that raw beauty in a world where “likes” mean more than real connections and that authenticity is a worthy, aspirational human quality.
Like the title of this project, all the portraits created are raw and unretouched with the exception of colour conversion, w/b and exposure corrections, vignetting and cropping. The models are bare faced, ungroomed, bare chested or shouldered, in a “come as you are” state that reveals the REAL and RAW person under all the spit and polish.
As my hero Peter Lindbergh once said…
“If photographers are responsible for creating or reflecting an image of women in society...then, I must say, there is only one way for the future, and this is to define women as strong and independent. This should be the responsibility of photographers today: to free women, and finally everyone, from the terror of youth and perfection.”
A special thank you goes out to my tribe of brave, beautiful, trusting models. You did what a lot of other in the industry couldn’t: you allowed yourselves to be photographed without “hair and makeup.” Bravo! Your courage, trust and belief in this project is deeply appreciated. I hope you love your RAW selves as much as I do.
Please note: images in this project were created with permission in 2014, 2018 and 2019.
