SCAN MAGAZINE WINTER 2022
MICHELLE CARMONA Fourth-year, photography Interviewed by John Warner
What inspired your mythology-based series? My mythology series was based on Greek myths I learned as a child, mainly from a sudden and acute interest in the “Percy Jackson” books. What attracted me to the series was how it provided mysterious answers of the world that somehow made sense. I guess that’s why we’re all so interested in myths and faith — those things still unknown to man that can be explained by the stories passed down through generations. Myths not only shaped my perspective of the world but fueled my obsession with gladiators and Renaissance art.
How does the Renaissance apply to your work? Renaissance is inspired by Roman and Greek myths. You can’t look at a Renaissance piece and not be brought back to Greek and Roman myths. But the question is how? Renaissance art plays a lot off of Christianity and s ecular ar t while implement ing stories, themes and poses based on my thology. One aspect I’m heavily influenced by is Rembrandt lighting. This is a lighting style that a modern artist, Chris Knights (@chrisknightphoto), brings onto his sets. It’s typically not a common light style for the modern era and I wanted to adapt that with my own unique touch. That unique touch can be found in the photos with the gilded finger, referring to the story of King Midas. The stills featuring the gilded apples refer to the trials of Hercules and the stills featuring the vase refer to the story of Persephone and Hades.
