A Girl is a Gun, the fashion story
In this thing of ours, photography not the mafia lol, a big piece of what we do is directly tied to the art of storytelling.
Thinking back to older times, capturing memories and telling stories that were passed down between generations was all down by the tribe's storytellers, writers, painters, and photographers. We must push and pull society to propel us forward. As a fashion photographer, that same element exists. We use fashion, expression (or lack of), and movement to convey ideas about people and the world at large. We challenge the status quo, we provoke, we prod, and we hold a mirror up to the cultural pillars we adhere to.
I strongly believe that sharing your journey is the truthful way to inspire others. The jig is up. The facade of having it all together from the beginning til the end of a journey is over. We owe it to the people following after us to show the steps and the missteps, the successes and the failures. I am a self-taught photographer who found the craft later in life. And as I master this next layer of storytelling in my artistry, I hope to be forthcoming with those who pay attention, in hopes to continue to progress our craft as well as continue to challenge society.
This thing of ours is important for so many reasons. So many have laid the path for us to follow along the way.
In concept, ballet highlights strength and precision as much as it does elegance and sensuality. Similarly in the way that there’s a presumed softness to womanhood, the reality is that it innately requires a level of prowess and resilience that often gets overlooked. I want to highlight the duality of humanity through a woman being pushed to the extreme (in still images), using movement to highlight her being.
Let me paint the scene for you; voyeuristically we, the audience, follow a seemingly gentle woman through the city. Moving with no obvious purpose, in each scene she appears unsuspecting. First from a distance but as we get closer and closer, we notice her noticing us until finally she reveals her venom and we stand face to face with our mistake. To underestimate is a dangerous game.
I have wanted to shoot with Nardia since I saw the images of her with the homie Cam, @rachardwolf . A Black ballerina in the area who was on her way to stardom. Since that moment, I’ve watched her create beautiful imagery and also become one of the main features of The Washington Ballet. This concept came alive after watching ballets over the years and being inspired by the poetry of movement and how stories are told in the most subtle of ways.
The vibe of this shoot was meant to channel the essence of film’s like ‘Basic Instinct’ or ‘Silver’, where the lead character appears innocent but as me learn more, we begin to view her as the formidable force that she truly is. Think Robin Givens in ‘Boomerang’ or Salli Richardson in ‘Low Down Dirty Shame’.
For Nardia’s fit, the vision was to highlight her softness but in a way that still upheld a air of “take me seriously”. Thanks to Hannah, my stylist on this project, we were able to capture that aesthetic and bring this concept to life, in full.
To bring this concept to life, the location had to match the same level of darkness as the vibe. This particular Metro stop was dark and ominous with the way light falls underneath of these tall arches and tunnel-like walls.
