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Photography

Jess Brohier: “I am obsessed with light and the way it falls”

Jess Brohier

From her still life portraits to her commercial work for Adidas, Cotton On, and MECCA, Jess Brohier is a chameleon who understands how to navigate the often murky waters of artistic liberty.

Quite literally the modern painting, photographs confront the viewer with brutal honesty – from pointing out the worst of humanity to highlighting unsung moments that would never have seen the light of day. Photographers throw themselves into their work, never giving up until the perfect shot – the perfect moment – is frozen in time.

Melbourne-based photographer Jess Brohier understands this all too well. When she’s not shooting campaigns for fashion brands, Brohier is working to develop her craft on an artistic level. And with her vast experience in personal and commercial photography, Brohier’s approach to the medium is something that is uniquely her.

In the past year, the photographer and art director has been working with her friend on a project which seeks to push the boundaries of body image. Positioning her models amongst floral arrangements, the images promise to showcase female-identifying people in all their beautifully natural glory.

Jess Brohier

HAPPY: Could you describe your creative process?

JESS: Usually it’s one of two paths, either start with a blurry idea in mind, drawn from a conversation, art documentary, infinite scroll, or other random stimuli, then pull a bunch of creative people in a room and see what happens. Or have a vivid, spontaneous vision in the late hours of the morning between being awake and asleep, and eventually configure it into a visual version of itself that will often look nothing like the initial vision.

HAPPY: And how do you know when a work is finished?

JESS: When you know, you know. Or when you add something else and in doing so it takes something away, then it’s time to stop.

HAPPY: What’s the biggest difference between approaching a shoot commercially versus non-commercially?

JESS: A client being involved. The client chooses how the final image looks and all the steps on how to get there. Ultimately the decision lies with the client, and sometimes also with myself if they value my creative opinion, which is not always the case, ironically. If there is no client, all decisions are in my creative control – in saying this I wholeheartedly believe in collaboration being a case of ‘more minds are greater than one’, so I really like to have everyone’s ideas vocalised on set and also prior to the shoot in pre-production as well.

I know some photographers are quite unyielding to suggestions, but I find the best way to operate personally when making creative work is to utilise each team member’s strength and creativity for a better end result. I’ll do my job and if I trust the experience and vision of the person I’m working with, I let them do theirs. This is both sometimes very successful and sometimes a disappointment – but at least it’s always interesting. The collaboration aspect and creative freedom of personal work are the main difference, and also what makes it so much more satisfying.

HAPPY: In your opinion, is a ‘photographer’s eye’ something that you are born with, or can it be taught?

JESS: Unless you are a prodigy, I think the ‘eye’ is definitely a learned skill, and is constantly being developed. I think if you practice, research, and love taking photographs, over a period of time you would surely be able to create amazing work based on understanding principles. But then again, I feel like maybe it just comes easier to some people over others sometimes.

HAPPY: Max Dupain once said “modern photography must do more than entertain, it must incite thought”. When you’re photographing something, which is more important; technical knowledge or artistic instinct? Why?

JESS: For a long time, I thought it was all about technical knowledge. I’m self taught, so for most of my career I wondered if I should have gone back to school, that I was missing something. I was definitely much more of a conceptual photographer in earlier years, that changed when I started working more commercially, and I miss that focus.

At this point I believe it’s a perfect balance of both that makes an incredible photographer. You can be completely technically sound but if the images lack emotion, art direction, narrative, vulnerability, or style, the work just won’t be quite there. And likewise even with an incredible concept, if you are shooting it in the dark without any composition it’s not going to work. I feel like I’ve been searching for a balance between the two since I started taking photographs.

HAPPY: I noticed in your portfolio that you’ve done a mix of studio photography and on-location photography. How much does the environment dictate the final image?

JESS: Shooting on location brings a lot of life and interest to the image naturally, and the model feels more at ease. The elements however can be tricky to work with – the light is always changing, so you have to work with what’s available and possible on the day. Photographing still life outside is much more challenging for me, personally. In the studio, everything can be prepared and controlled so the final images tend to be less spontaneous. I prefer shooting on location when shooting people, mostly when I’m travelling.

HAPPY: I feel like when it comes to any kind of art, there’s this idea that conforming to the mainstream equals a loss of expression. You’ve shot campaigns for brands like Volley and Sportsgirl. Is there still an ‘art’ to commercial photography or is it more ‘let’s show off the product and keep it moving’?

JESS: I mean I do agree, conforming to the mainstream does mean a loss of artistic expression. However, unfortunately artistic expression rarely pays the bills so in order to work full time as a creative, sacrifices must be made. I don’t think I am viewed as a typical commercial photographer, and from what I’ve heard from industry friends, I’m the ‘riskier’ option. I think this is mostly due to the fact that I choose to share and pursue making work I am creatively interested in over the kind that will get me work.

I think when brands come to me to shoot commercial projects they are looking for something different, even though ironically I would say the final product is always based on their idea of ‘different’ and often (not always!) ends up looking the same. It’s definitely about product focus – the sheer volume of content created on a commercial set dictates this as well. It’s hard to experiment and maintain artistic integrity when you’re under the pump with three minutes per shot and five of the client’s team looking over your shoulder. Still have to try though!

HAPPY: Stereotypically, when people think of modelling, they tend to think of women first. I know you’re working on a new project featuring women with diverse bodies. I was hoping you could share more about it and, in your opinion, what is it about the female form that works so well with photography?

JESS: I’m working on a project with my good friend Kayla who runs xxflos in Melbourne. The project came about from wanting to represent diverse bodies in the photographs I create. I grew up in a white-washed, size 6 Dolly Magazine world, and there was no one who looked like me or any of my friends in the media I consumed as a teen. This led to feeling othered, unaccepted, as well as a barrage of body dysmorphic issues, an experience held by so many women of all colours and sizes, fuelled by a lack of diversity and real bodies being seen. Representation is key in breaking down barriers and creating equality across the fashion industry, the beauty industry, retail, advertising, the way we consume, who gets the jobs, and the list goes on. It affects everything.

The project we are working on is a small start. We are creating a calendar for print next year that features 12 artworks, consisting of 12 unique floral installations and 12 female-identifying people of diverse ethnicities and bodies. The project is in effort to subvert the original idea of the ‘Calendar Girl’. The idea is that when you hang this calendar on your wall, you are reminded that all bodies are beautiful, all bodies are art.

I think women have always been seen as something to be viewed, coveted, consumed. As such women were the main focus to begin with, and have continued to be within fashion, beauty, and advertising. There is something mysterious, powerful, and alluring about women that enthrals the audience. I personally prefer and love photographing women for the same reasons. I particularly enjoy work that centres on women as the muse photographed via a female gaze, which tends to empower rather than commodify.

HAPPY: Why were props essential for this project? What do floral arrangements provide that other objects, or even models, can’t?

JESS: Photographing bodies is certainly a confronting process, both for the person being photographed and the person taking the photo. As we are photographing real women, many of whom will have no experience in front of a camera, in their most vulnerable state, bringing in an additional element is there to help distract and relax the muse. Florals have a femininity to them, and I feel there is also a soft familiarity that brings comfort. A parallel is drawn between the flowers and the body. Both as being natural and beautiful.

HAPPY: Why is photography the right medium for you?

JESS: Because I am obsessed with light and the way it falls. I can’t help needing to capture it in some way.

HAPPY: And finally, what do you want people to take away from your work?

JESS: I guess it varies widely depending on which of my work they are looking at. But maybe a sense of familiarity or comfort. Something that reminds them of something they hadn’t thought of in a while. Or maybe inspiration, in one way or another.

Keep up with Jess Brohier via Instagram or her website.

Interview by Matthew Leong
All images courtesy of Jess Brohier