Poise

Elegance, balance, and equilibrium

The Poise image series is focused on deconstructing Objectification Theory and Gender Theory in fashion photography. The meaning behind the Poise series comes from the definition of the word Poise which refers to the elegance of an individual and the balance and equilibrium between two individuals. The first six images are inspired by themes of royalty wherein both fashion and monarchy portraits, the male is always shown sitting on the throne or is shown sitting on the right (or in the viewer's perspective the left). In these images, I reversed the roles and had the female sit upon the "throne" and had the female subject seated on the right to show that women have the same capability of holding positions of power. My end goal was to emphasize the female subject as equal to her male counterpart and to appear as less of an object and appear graceful and Poised.

Models: Adriana Hill (seated on the right) and Tyler Pickfield (pictured to the left)

Models: Adriana Hill (pictured on the left) and Tyler Pickfield (pictured to the right)

The theme of love inspires the last six images. I wanted to capture the balance and equilibrium between two supposed lovers through editorial photography. In high fashion photography, women are typically portrayed as less than their male counterparts and are objectified in seductive ways that advertise the male gaze. You usually see examples of seductive and sexualized fashion images in perfume ads, haute couture campaigns for brands such as Dolce and Gabbana and Yves Saint Laurent to name a few, and sometimes in lingerie and swimsuit ads for brands like Victoria's Secret. With my images, I wanted to take inspiration from what I view as real love, and capture the passion that two individuals in love share. My end goal for the last six images of the Poise series is to show that the balance and equilibrium displayed between two lovers can be just as effective and powerful in selling the experience of love in a way that is pure.

In the last image, I wanted to capture something different and capture an editorial close-up of the gorgeous garment that model Adriana is wearing to incorporate a highlight on just the garment alone.