Editorial Boudoir Photography - Victoria BC

“There is a need to find and sing our own song, to stretch our limbs and shake them in a dance so wild that nothing can roost there, that stirs the yearning for solitary voyage.”
― Barbara Lazear Ascher

This was a creative project that has been percolating in the back of my mind for a while now – waiting for the right location + collaborative model to help bring it to life. Enter: Madeline. Professionally trained on pointe and in contortion, I knew Madeline and I would be able to make some weird, spooky, other-worldly magic.

“Gamache knew people were like homes. Some were cheerful and bright, some gloomy. Some could look good on the outside but feel wretched on the interior. And some of the least attractive homes, from the outside, were kindly and warm inside.

He also knew the first few rooms were for public consumption. It was only in going deeper that he'd find the reality. And finally, inevitably, there was the last room, the one we keep locked, and bolted and barred, even from ourselves. Especially from ourselves.”
― Louise Penny, The Cruelest Month

I wanted to create something not focused on beauty – I spend most of my time creating art for others that helps showcase people in their best light, so that they can use those feelings to draw inspiration from and channel into their daily lives. Beautiful, important work that I hold close to my heart and cherish beyond measure. However this time, I wanted to focus on the opposing darkness. If I spend most of my time casting people in their best light, this time I wanted to cast someone in their best dark. We spend a lot of our time as women, as humans, as people, putting on a mask and showing the world our best face. The vision of ourselves that we have subconsciously been curating for acceptance. Painted walls and facades that we, usually unknowingly, are constantly creating and destroying in order to excel in our culture. But we all hold crumbling buildings inside of us: pieces and parts we’ve long neglected the upkeep for, that still stand in our hearts as a decaying building stands forgotten in the wild of the forest. We are each a story of light and dark. And sometimes we need to celebrate those last rooms that we keep locked and barred from the world, and ourselves. Openly dance in between the crumbling walls and peeling paints: each room in our hearts is a piece of us. Our best light, and our best dark: working together to create ever evolving masterpieces.