Spontaneous, candid and uncompromisingly honest, Louise Parker’s Work Series grants backstage access to the often-idealised world of high fashion. With her snapshot style, and using either a Contax T2 or Fuji X100, Parker captured her first few seasons walking for the likes of Saint Laurent, Chanel, Christian Dior, Giambattista Valli and Topshop, among others. “I started Work Pictures right when I began modelling.
If one were to properly sum up the backstage scene at a fashion show, there’s only one word that does the experience justice: clusterfuck. Hairstylists, makeup artists, beauty editors, and photographers (the majority of whom are men) gather hours before buyers, celebrities, and fashion editrixes descend on the scene and the bright lights block out the unsightly blood, sweat, and tears it took to bring the ten-minute moment to fruition. In the eye of this seemingly ceaseless storm exists the model. Often jet-lagged and exhausted from running between catwalks, castings, and fittings, the calculated glamour these girls exude in close-ups with their pouty lips and come-hither stares is deceiving. Knowing they are hired to make a designer’s sartorial dream both covetable and marketable, models put on a seductive smize and sell that fantasy with each click of the camera—the lens shoved mere inches from their faces. The process is intrusive and often aggressive, but it’s part of the job. It’s a side of the industry that few people rarely get to see or bother to capture because it doesn't radiate the stereotypical allure associated with fashion. The public wants photos of "happy" or "sexy" girls—not girls being real. And that's where Louise Parker comes in.
Embedded in the cast (be it for the house of Chanel, Dior, or Saint Laurent), Parker is like a secret agent armed only with a compact Contax T2 or Fuji x100. “I aim to cover the broadest range of subjects possible, so I photograph everything from castings and fittings, to hair and makeup, to time spent in a hotel or model apartment,” explained the model who first dabbled with the medium as the photo editor of her high school newspaper and went on to major in the subject at Bard College. “It is during these redundant phases of preparation that I become the most inspired, because these are some of the unglamorous aspects of modeling that are rarely portrayed.” While Parker certainly isn’t the first model
to switch to the other side of the camera (think: Ellen von Unwerth and Rie Rasmussen), she offers a rare glimpse into her private, unedited world. But make no mistake, Parker’s portfolio and artsy Instagram account aren’t designed to rack up red hearts: “I am not trying to get ‘likes’ with my pictures; I am just trying to tell a story. There is a rush for social media attention these days which is good and has helped models gain a voice over the last couple of years, but that is not what my photography is about,” she says. “I am attracted to subtle, mundane moments that do not seek to glorify the world I am experiencing. Although I will post a cute and curated selfie to my Instagram from a Chanel show, I am also there with my camera taking pictures during rehearsal when we have wig caps on and half our makeup finished.”
to switch to the other side of the camera (think: Ellen von Unwerth and Rie Rasmussen), she offers a rare glimpse into her private, unedited world. But make no mistake, Parker’s portfolio and artsy Instagram account aren’t designed to rack up red hearts: “I am not trying to get ‘likes’ with my pictures; I am just trying to tell a story. There is a rush for social media attention these days which is good and has helped models gain a voice over the last couple of years, but that is not what my photography is about,” she says. “I am attracted to subtle, mundane moments that do not seek to glorify the world I am experiencing. Although I will post a cute and curated selfie to my Instagram from a Chanel show, I am also there with my camera taking pictures during rehearsal when we have wig caps on and half our makeup finished.”
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