Gabriel Isak DAZED DELUSIONS

For Stockholm, Sweden-based photographer Gabriel Isak, photography is symbolic of his re-entry into the world after a seven-year struggle with depression. His early artwork is inspired by both his internal pain and the external world, he says, and the inspiration he found in surrealism and his Swedish heritage. “Dazed Delusions,” a series he photographed in a playground in San Francisco, tells the story of a woman who drifts into an imaginary world—an abstract and dreamy environment where she interacts with the colors, shapes and lines she encounters.

The series was inspired by Isak’s introverted and imaginative childhood, whence he immersed himself in the graphic and colorful world to escape lonely days without many friends in the small and isolated town of Huskvarna, Sweden. “I was always fascinated by the bold colors and strong graphic forms and wanted to incorporate these elements into the project,” he says.

Drawing from both the fine-art and fashion worlds, he created the series with a mirror, paper and spheres in various configurations to create an illusionary color-blocked atmosphere. Inspired in part by the photography of Julia Hetta, Nygårds Karin Bengtsson, Todd Hido and Miles Aldridge, Isak tapped friend and stylist Teresa Tran to help him produce the shoot. They used a playground near her apartment building for its graphic elements, bold colors and minimal aesthetic that he’s always been attracted to because of his Scandinavian heritage, he says. “Growing up in such pristine nature and country, design has a big impact on everyday life.”

—Lindsay Comstock

Photos @ Gabriel Isak gabrielisak.com