Collaboration with Henri T
A small selection of photos from the shoot.
Concept & Performance: Claud Tonietto @claud_tonietto
Art Direction & Photography: Henri T @henritartist @documentedbyhenrit
Styling & Photo Assistance: Shanti Freed @shantifreed
Photo Assistance: Rowan For Now @rowan_for_now
With thanks to Ugly Duck for supporting with their amazing spaces
At first, I thought I wanted to work with a photographer to build a collection of photos, as visual content I could use for website, socials, call outs and similar things.
Working with Henri turned out to be so much more than a photoshoot to get images out of. It was a real collaborative process, that allowed me to face fears I had around myself in relation to the camera; to address questions around co-creating a nurturing work environment that would allow play and centre comfort; to reflect on different ways to create a context (incl. a physical space) for creativity to bubble; to feel my body and explore my aesthetic.
Some questions & thoughts we held with us, in our process:
exploring the queer body / dyke body / trans body through images and the camera
exploring the moving body in relation to photos
what would a Utopian photoshoot be like (look like, feel like,…)?
where do I belong with and in my body?
conversation with the camera - what’s the relationship?
(I want to be a Rebel Dyke and I want to dance with Christine and The Queens / Redcar / Chris - can you tell?!)
The process…
we had several chats about the overall project, our collaboration, sharing ideas, looking through inspirations, making plans, checking in about ways of working
we had a site visit to start dreaming shoots and creative thoughts
we created a delicious mood board of images as inspiration
we created a playlist to accompany our shoot day (see ‘Playlists’ page to find it)
we made sure we had what we needed to make the space feel homely, warm and comfy: blankets, heaters, kettle, hot water bottles, food
we invited Shanti Freed and Rowan For Now into the process, to support with styling, photo assistance and help make sure we were all looking after ourselves on the day
we brought into the space lots of options for outfits and pieces of clothing to experiment with, and to bring a sense of play into it
…and we had a great day of queer joy and gender euphoria!