Dear Diane and Shaded Viewers,
Annin Arts is bringing art to the masses, literally, with their latest exhibition #MYNAMEIS. The show sees five artworks by Nastasia Alberti, Duval Timothy, Kevin Morosky, Annie Mackin and Gillian Wearing displayed on single billboards throughout London. While #MYNAMEIS brings up intriguing questions surrounding a different kind of interaction with art outside of exclusive gallery walls, its main focus lies in the importance, perception and burdens of names.
London-based artist Nastasia Alberti chose Slutever blogger and Vogue columnist Karley Sciortino as her subject, depicting the writer in a sepia-toned portrait. In the following interview, Alberti discusses hours of location scouting in public libraries, the single image that inspired her to take up photography and why art consumption needs to catch up with our busy schedules.
When was the first time you realized you were interested in photography?
I start being interested in it when I was about 13 or 14 years old. I can remember that moment exactly: I went to an exhibition with my family and saw a Francesca Woodman photograph, the one where she's disappearing into the wall. That image had a very strong impact on me. Somehow it was showing what I was feeling. From then on, I wanted to do the same.
How do you go about creating your images and what inspires them?
I usually get inspired by my own life. I try to talk about emotions, about feelings.
What was the working process on this exhibition like?
It was really quick. The first aspect was choosing the girl and then timing. When George Annin told me about the exhibition and the subject that Gillian Wearing wanted us to work with, I got a bit freaked out because it was far away from what I usually do. But once I passed that stage it was really fun. I proposed my idea of working with Karley Sciortino to the gallery and they completely supported me, which was great. So then it was only a matter of organization, I had to go to NYC to see her.
Talk to me about the composition and overall feel you were going for in your photograph.
I wanted something moody but peaceful in her expression and an image that somehow would show Karley as a strong person. It was very important that she was seated at a desk surrounded by books. We walked around in the NYC library for hours to find the right place. I really wanted the photo to remind people of those old portrait paintings of writers, where they were always pictured sitting at their old desks with glasses on, looking very wealthy and serious.
How do you see the photograph interpreting the themes of the exhibition?
I really wanted to create a piece on the expectation that goes with names, the idea of clich
