I had an image in mind that was so far from this. I had found these massive inflatable eggs on amazon, an easter decoration that I thought would somehow be perfect for this series. Their scale, the polka dots, the slight deflation, all ridiculous and equally oppressive in measure. There are more shots from the day that come close or do capture exactly what I was thinking - some conflict of womanhood, decision making and things being bigger deals than they are. When Valerie asked me if she could smile I wasn't certain, but her perfect pearly whites and the gaze in her eyes actually captured a madness I wasn't sure I was trying to express, but I now realise that madness is what these images are all about.
I met @konoyonoharu_ in Tokyo, on our last day they made a three minute portrait of me and @fentonbaileyphotography , both drawing similtaniously, on the same piece of paper at the same time. They told me it's good luck to start the year by dreaming of Mount Fuji. I wasn't so lucky as to start the year on that dream, but at least my luck took me to Mt Fuji.
This diptych is of Valery with a quail egg cracked in her bellybutton. I had shot Valery years ago and after recently posting a picture of her we got back in touch. A lot had happened in both our lives since our last shoot, including Valery recovering from a near death situation. Valery wanted some new pictures for her portfolio so in return she offered to do some pictures for the theme I’ve been playing with. The cracked egg in belly was an image I had in mind, albeit differently to how it turned out. There’s something squeamish about raw eggs, although we interact with them so often. The smell of “zafara” which doesn’t really have a direct translation but literally equates to that “eggy smell” comes to mind. Due to bad planning I ended up shooting in black and white although I always imagined the image in colour - a bold yellow yolk against bare skin. Instead it now works as a diptych, with the egg in shell and without.
This autumn I went on sabbatical for two months. I had needed to give myself the space to focus on my photography again after focusing all my energy on the MOP show. My first instinct was to reach out to all my old clients in a rush to tell them I was available and ready. But the more I thought about it the more I realised what I really wanted to do was take the time to fall back in love with photography again. My whole practice has always centred around people, be it fashion, portraiture or documentary work. I did a few portraits during my sabbatical but I also wanted to give myself a brief to play with. Something that would get my eye, brain and lab working again. I chose eggs for a multitude of reasons. Apart from how bewildered my flat mate was at the idea of it all I thought it was an opportunity to have a subject who was accessible at all times. Nature's perfect form in shape and strength, eggs didn't just represent an element of surrealism to me, but also touches on the subject of reproduction and things that as a woman in my early thirties are prevalent realities to me. I'll be sharing bits of my eggs over the next few weeks while still trying to exhaust the subject into some new meaning.
