The stories of the people behind the art: Michelle Berj #7

I think art is so subjective and personal. I can see how what others perceive as aesthetically pleasing, there are those who wouldn’t care for it at all. I have such a strong passion for exploring abstract compositions and aesthetically unique scenarios, all in the hopes to possibly make something engaging and interesting. Whenever I would meet a film photographer, I’d ask them why film photos were so cool. And they could never specifically answer that question, but they knew exactly what I was talking about. The photos end up having so much depth and dimension to them. I think they’re much more satisfying than a digital photo. With my Pentax K1000 camera, I have to manually focus each shot, and on top of that, my camera battery had to be replaced so the light meter wouldn’t work. I downloaded several different apps to make the aperture and shutter speed adjustments. And even then, the photos are somewhat of a mystery until they’re finally developed. So there’s so much time that takes place from the second you take that shot to the moment you see your developed photo. It’s brought a calm sense of momentum for me to document different settings. I started bringing my camera with me everywhere just in case there’s an opportunity to take an interesting photo. I don’t even know what it is exactly that I think is interesting, but it’s usually something unexpected and possibly overlooked by others. It’s an organized artistic crime. It’s a subtle form of rebellion to embrace eccentric interests in creating, what I perceive to be, beautiful images.

I think that nudity in art is something that often stirs very diverse and opinionated responses. I personally like to work with nudity by embracing vulnerability and putting myself out there. I’ve gained a lot of expressive freedom from the nude modeling I’ve done. I’ve met so many like-minded and creative individuals through it that I would have otherwise been isolated from. I’ve been able to explore and understand a lot about myself in knowing how to relate a certain emotion or feeling to a photo. I gain even more fulfillment by taking the photos myself since I’m in complete control of what I’m trying to capture and the end results. I’m enjoying the evolution of my work and my passion with photography is constantly growing and shifting towards things I thought I’d never do.

“Thinking differently and seeing things clearly can stimulate really original and engaging designs.”

I think it’s important to fight for individuality with what you do. It’s so common to succumb to traditional and stagnant paths in life, but far too often they leave a lack of fulfillment. I think it’s so important to expressive yourself creatively, however that is, and to understand what you’re trying to say in your work even if you’re saying nothing at all. Thinking differently and seeing things clearly can stimulate really original and engaging designs.