Adolescence

The stills from this shoot capture a vulnerable young girl as she experiences the difficulties of adolescence. The composition’ and styling of the shoot, were influenced by Titans painting, ‘St Mary Magdalene,’ which depicts a woman (Mary Magdalene) in a moment of despair. Replicating the facial expression/body language of Titus’s ‘Mary Magdalene’, proved effective in building the narrative and characterisation of the young woman in these final stills. The accessories, makeup and props in this shoot exist as symbolic tools which represent youthfulness (the orange flower), purity (the white garments) and curiosity/confusion (gold tears) which are all emotions/states, which are associated with adolescence. To keep to the renaissance aesthetic of the collection, the young woman’s image sits within a bordering gold frame to give the overall still a more classical appearance. The colours within this shoot were intentionally brightened and saturated, to solidify the youthful essence of the stills. Audiences are supposed to see this young woman, empathise and question why she cries. The answer is purposely ambiguous as these images were designed to move people to draw their own conclusions and reflect on the questions that personally riddled them during their’ time of adolescence. Creative director, stylist and editor – Noreen M H Model – Julia W