002
{
sept. 2010
A Knowledge of Photography
Featuring $10 US $14 CAN
Moholy Ground Magazine
[projected]
{
}
J O S I E P E R E Z - R A M O N D E T TA
LE FEMME I saw this series in my mind even before I began to
Alfred Hitchcock, and Federico Fellini. My need to creatively
work on it. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to
experiment with a lens was also fueled by the work of Gordon
depict a timeless and soulful female, both fierce and aloof.
Parks, Diane Arbus, and Walker Evans. The series of individual
The aesthetic was crafted to evoke a lingering sense
portraits was created from 1995-2000, and I approached it
of melancholy; a classic romanticism with a modern
with meticulous research and attention to detail.
liberated edge.
I knew exactly what shadows I wanted, at what angle I wanted
I was inspired by the dark romanticism of film noir and wanted
a hat to be tilted, what look I wanted in a model’s gaze. It was
to marry it with the raw emotion and grit that informed the
essential to place each woman in a setting that would reflect
World War II era of blues and jazz. I looked at the project as a
her character’s identity and draw out her essence.
retrospect of characters torn from the film stills of John Alton,
continued on page 15
Fall 2010 | 9
Moholy Ground Magazine
Fall 2010 | 11
Moholy Ground Magazine
Fall 2010 | 13
Moholy Ground Magazine
{
“IT WAS ESSENTIAL TO PLACE EACH WOMAN IN A SETTING THAT WOULD REFLECT HER CHARACTER’S IDENTITY AND DRAW OUT HER ESSENCE.”
As a photographer, it was challenging for me at times to not
Aside from the attention to styling each subject, I also tried
only bring down the barriers between my subject and the
to photograph them all in a spontaneous moment with natural
camera lens (all the women were friends, not professional
light, without the distraction of additional stage lights or filters
models), but also to gingerly bring out each woman’s natural
and reflectors. Each woman stands in her unique diorama,
beauty and story. That essence of the “timeless le femme”
her true essence and power laid bare against the occasional
was evasive, and the more obvious artifices of costume
light bulb and a simple backdrop.
and setting could have easily overwhelmed the shoot, but I strove to bring out the best interpretation of each individual woman’s script.
“If film noir males are destroyed or nearly destroyed by fate, the noir woman is fate’s emissary, a siren leading the man to ruination” — Jack Nachbar
Fall 2010 | 15
Moholy Ground Magazine
Fall 2010 | 17
Moholy Ground Magazine
Fall 2010 | 19
Moholy Ground Magazine
Fall 2010 | 21