Photography |

Morii (n.)

Ashley Victoria

The desire to capture a fleeting moment.

Ballet has been known for its ideals of “perfection” and “beauty”. It is an art form that is catered for the viewer’s pleasure. Being involved with the arts and having danced since I was a child, I wanted to see if ballet could be looked at through a lens other than “perfection”. Possessing knowledge and experience on how it feels to dance and move the body in certain ways contributes immensely to how I instruct my dancers (models). Moreover, having an insider’s knowledge helps me achieve an end product that finds balance between breaking the notion of perfection, satisfying both the dancer and viewer, and still being able to showcase the dancer themselves.

This photographic series in particular consists of two parts and is made to capture the attention of those that are interested in dance as well as aestheticism. It focuses on dismantling the concept of “perfection”; aiming to get people to look at and think about things in ways they normally wouldn’t. These photographs challenge the notion of “perfection” through experimentation via mixing mediums such as paint with photography, not directly showing the face (focusing on movements and lines), and using softness to create an ethereal look. On top of that, this series entices the viewer into a world of ongoing equilibrium that articulates the movements and the human bodies of dancers. Moments are depicted that only exist to punctuate the human drama in order to clarify our existence and to find poetic meaning in everyday life.