I find this editorial to be both disturbing and intriguing, rather than solely a ‘beautiful editorial’. That’s not to say I don’t love this editorial, because I really do. Slightly odd and left of centre, yet still intriguing and enchanting in its own way. The story and the person behind the shoot makes it all the more appealing. Born in Norway and educated in London, Paris and New York, Anja Niemi now lives between both London and Oslo. Her series “Starlets” has been exhibited at The Little Black Gallery in London and has been hugely successful. In this series she combines the self-portrait with the idea of the staged narrative. The images are like stills or movie posters, with herself cast as all the characters. She calls herself a ‘one-man band’ as she always work alone. Although it is mostly fiction, she says “There will always be a bit of me in them“, believing that private experiences helps to create universal statements. The images possess an eerie, unreal quality, combining tragedy and humour. Her inspiration is intuitive but also comes from movies such as David Lynch films or even from dance performances.
Concerning her project called “Do Not Disturb“, she got the idea for the hotel rooms after reading an article on 1950s housewives in Norway getting a paid vacation from the government because of their difficult situation, and she started to imagine all the things they could have been doing, or the things she would have done. Then, she searched for the perfect hotel room, spending sometimes hours, sometimes days to find the perfect inspiration, she says “It´s a little like dancing, I try to feel and let it out through my movement.” After all those peregrinations, here is the result of her fabulous work. It is tragic and intimate, full up with gravity and silence…
Ange x
Gurlinterrupted
A Girl Interrupted By Fashion, Beauty & Anything Pretty That Catches My Eye
