In many ways, Alisa Connan is – if we can make an easy reference to a pop-culture figure with whom, thanks to recent allegations of sexual harassment, we’re more familiar than ever – the anti-Terry Richardson. Both, in a sense, take photographs which can be read as ‘erotic’, but where Richardson is known for his explicitness, his brashness and the masculine gaze of his camera, Connan’s images (which frequently appear in the pages of Esquire, Vogue and Vanity Fair) are usually praised for their softness, their cinematic quality and their intimacy. “I’m a portrait photographer, first and foremost,” she explains “And I’d certainly say that I specialise in photographing women. I also prefer shooting people who aren’t used to having their picture taken, because it’s easier to capture something of them that way – I guess you could say that mostly, I get satisfaction out of making my subjects feel good about themselves.” Asked about whether the fact that, having run a quick Google search of her name, the descriptors which crop up again and again are the kind considered typically ‘feminine’ – ‘intimate’, ‘soft’ ‘playful’, and so on – bothers her, Connan is nonplussed, knowing that her gender works to her advantage when gaining the trust of her subjects. Her secret for capturing authentic-looking emotion from the models, actresses and ingenues she’s so used to shooting (the models, by the way, are often her least favourite to shoot, because they’re less capable of letting down their guard on-camera)? “I try to get them genuinely feeling the emotion that the client wants to see from them, rather than asking them to act it. Although generally, publications ask me what I want to do now, rather than the other way around. They’re looking for a particular style from me, one that captures the essence of the woman in question.”
The cinematic style of her photographs, it seems, has been heavily inspired by a number of films, though she couldn’t say which. “I’m one of those people who reads and enjoys a book, and then immediately forgets the title,” she laughs. “Although, on a shoot, I’d rather see film for inspiration than a collection of other people’s images.” Eventually, after being pressed, she remembers one particular film which, she hopes, will inform some of her work in the future – Rob Marshall’s screen version of the musical ‘Nine’.
“Specifically,” as she explains with a chuckle, “the poledancing scene.”
Alisa Connan will be guest-blogging for Art Wednesday in the near future, sharing some of her personal projects with us in the form of a photo diary. You can also buy her ‘Olga’ print, the first image pictured below, here in the Art Wednesday store.
Alisa Connan (Click Here)
