Photo 2 Blog

Maya Creede-Penna

subject x: hair as intimacy

My Subject X is representing hair as intimacy and connection. Instead of using hair to take an angle that is abject and unnerving, I intended to create photographs that feel comforting and nostalgic. I wanted to still have an aspect of strangeness and irregularity to the images, which is why they are portraying scenarios that are not mundane or natural. This is expressed through an exaggeration of small moments, such as big chunks of hair on a shirt that represent the intimacy of picking off hair from someone’s shirt. Despite this strangeness, the photos still manage to convey comfort and familiarity through their themes. I kept the shots very close up and personal to convey intimacy and closeness. My editing is aiming to emphasise the dreamy, soft quality of the subject.

WIP photographs:

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2 responses to “Maya Creede-Penna”

  1. symea Avatar
    symea

    Okay now thiss….. this is legitness…. Maya I’m so obsessed and love you so bad. The warmth of some images and the coolness of others is very intriguing when placed next to eachother; starts speaking to the shakiness/ uneasiness of vulnerability in intimate relationships (hot and cold connections, inconsistency). Everything you said in your statement I see embodied most effectively through your first image; the comfort, familiarity, closeness, lil sexy, and almost a sense of desperation? Boots. Also love the idea of capturing the closeness of picking hair off your shirt, that is a hair of a person you love. I am curious of if perhaps you had two models, one picking hair off the clothes of the other. Really enjoy the hair in the hands aswell, reminds me of having your hands in someone’s hair in a romantic way, but since the other figure isn’t there, it kinda tells a story of loss/ yearning/ unreciprocated feelings? I feel like getting even closer to the subject, like you did in the first image would be a step to help that feeling of intimacy along and tell a more vivid story (perhaps a pillow or sofa as a prop too could help show a shared comfortable space for more context? Idek if I agree with myself so lots of grains of lots of salt). Also, if you printed these small on a larger piece of matte (warm and textured) paper, that could also help in final presentation to draw the viewer into this loving little world (just spit balling for future ideas lol like just excited to see these printed and getting ahead of myself lolollolol). Okay byeee!!! <333

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  2. lvande14 Avatar
    lvande14

    Your artist statement does a good job of describing/explaining the goal of your subject choice. I think the images you have chosen to display show your intended ideas really well. Your choice of hair, being large chunks and different colours than your model mixed with the soft lighting really express that conversation of abject and comfort.

    The 3rd and last images are the ones I am most drawn too. For the 3rd, I love how the hair looks to be wrapping around the fingers as if it refuses to let go of the figure or vice versa. I think it might be interesting if you took a slightly closer shot of the hands in order for viewers to see more details in the clumps of hair. The last one is giving off strong feelings of loss, mostly due to the way the figure is looks and daintily picking off the hair. This really reminds me of the experience of major hair loss due to sickness.

    I’m not sure if you were intending it, and maybe it is my personal experiences around this subject, but there seems to be this significant sadness in your images. Through your choice of poses and size of the chuncks of hair there is a sense that this person has gone or is going through something devastating and is filled with despair.

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