SEE HER WORK
THE MAGIC OF MOTHERHOOD
Photographer Valerie Steinkoenig brings artistic elegance to motherhood. BY JESS BUGG
Valerie Steinkoenig, a self-proclaimed renaissance enthusiast, has a flair for the dramatic. Her most intriguing images have oldworld qualities yet remain undeniably modern. Best known for her ethereal fine art portraiture, her studio, Valerie Kay Photography, covers everything from maternity sessions to children’s milestones and each moment in between. Newborns are swathed in natural fabrics (most of which Steinkoenig knitted herself ) and nestled in woven baskets atop plush textiles, or rest on half-moons that appear suspended in the starry night sky. The images would feel at home adorning the walls of a hollowed-out tree, tucked away in a magical forest. Mothers in her images are often depicted as goddesses, draped in couture gowns and sometimes embellished with crowns formed from gold halos or leaves. Steinkoenig’s style ranges from celestial to understated elegance, many of the photographs relying primarily on lighting to create portraits with more strippeddown sophistication. Steinkoenig is incredibly hands-on, photographing, editing and printing her own work. “The time we spend in the studio is really the smallest part of the job. I have so much going on behind the scenes.”
Suffering from chronic migraines made holding down a typical 9-to-5 job difficult for Steinkoenig. However, it forced her to find creative ways to work for herself. “I had a little side gig sewing children’s boutique outfits, something I picked up making cute things for my daughter.” Her love of sewing began as a child when she would play on her grandmother’s sewing machine, and it still plays a crucial role in her work today. “I started my studio wardrobe with three gowns I hand sewed,” she reveals. “Those first sessions funded the purchase of the more couture versions I have now.” 20 | AUSTIN WOMAN | JANUARY 2022
Photos by Valerie Steinkoenig.
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
