fashion in disguise

In honor of the life, work and recent passing of photographer and visionary Deborah Turbeville I wanted to put together a small selection of her work which appeals to me on many levels for endless reasons. I instantly gravitate to her moody, haunted images that beg to tell a story or perhaps only part of it, leaving the viewer free to imagine the prelude or conclusion. I am also impressed by her lack of formal training and manipulation of the medium from soft focus to scratched negatives and over-exposurers. Her choices in settings are the stuff my dreams are made of and the selection of models is always off the beaten path, something that was not de rigueur in the 1960's when Deborah got her start. She is credited with changing the face of fashion photography which I can't argue against, but to me the bulk of her work is really worlds beyond fashion. Even in her most commercial moments she still conveys a feeling that spans her career…  a feminine softness, a world-weariness, loss, uncertainty, the heavy and dark facets of female temperament along with all of its beauty and sensuality.

poster girl

I have always had an affinity and fascination with photographs, photography, cameras and the captured image which I lend to being raised by a mother who always had her camera near by and at the ready. At my parents, there are volumes of photo albums filled with stories of family vacations, birthdays, holidays, new babies, parties and quiet days at home. These images have created and solidified memories for me and they continue to have me capturing images and making new memories of my own. I was given my own camera around the age eight, a Kodak 110. I used it for the first time on a vacation to Disney World and soon after at a two week sleep over summer camp. I still have my early snapshots and enjoy flipping through all the dimly lit, blurry goodness.

Recently, while browsing images online, "The Kodak Girl" caught my attention. This was what the gents at Eastman Kodak conjured up to market their cameras specifically to women. How fascinating. Understandably, the underlying message here was that these cameras were so easy to use even a woman could do it. But instead of dumbing anything down, these advertisements show such strong and exciting examples of women. These ladies are adventurers, world travelers, fashion plates, mothers, wives, girlfriends. They are lone wolves, out seeking landscapes and scenery. They are happy. They are seeing the world. They are making memories. They inspire me so.