My Parental Figures (lol); Tokyo, Japan, 2005.
My mom recently uncovered a treasure trove of images saved across CD-Roms from our 2005 family trip to Japan. Among the blurry proto-digital photos of myself as a child was an image of my parents that was clearly taken by me, aged 7. This image has come to mean a lot to me for reasons related to my experience of my childhood, and the ways they are echoed by the formal attributes of the picture. Was my finger on the flash? Was the photo even intentional? I would love to be able to recall the expressions on my parents faces—were they annoyed? This image would have been made shortly before they separated, and it has become a reparative vehicle for me to imagine the emotional particulars of our home dynamic, which I struggled to confront in my adolesense.
Ahmet, Rovî and Emine looking at family records; Manisa, Turkey. April 12, 2022.
Ahmet at home; Istanbul, Turkey. April 2022.
Jordan; Los Angeles. September, 2021.
Self-portrait; Los Angeles. September, 2021.
Magaly; Westport, Massachusetts. September, 2021.
My family; Atlanta, Georgia. September, 2021.
LSDXOXO, for 032c "BILLBOARD" Digital Cover; Berlin, Germany. August, 2021.
The Inimitable Virgil Abloh; Paris, France. June, 2021.
Elyas Polat and Omar Sesay after the screening of AMEN BREAK, Louis Vuitton Men's SS22 Collection Film; Paris, France. June, 2021.
Ciesay and Mahfuz; Paris, France. June, 2021.
Djiby Kebe; Paris, France. June, 2021.
Thelma Buabeng, backstage at Louis Vuitton; Paris, France. June, 2021.
Caleb Femi, backstage at Louis Vuitton; Paris, France. June, 2021.
Elyas opening his family’s corner shop for us; Paris, France. June, 2021.
Kai, out-of-focus; Paris, France. June, 2021.
Ben washing bleach out of his hair; London, UK. June, 2021.
Ben at Shadwell Basin; London, UK. June, 2021.
Ben on a swing, where he looks like a fallen angel; London, UK. June, 2021.
Jess at Ben’s for tea; London, UK. June, 2021.
Hector at Ben’s for tea; London, UK. June, 2021.
OB at Ben’s for tea; London, UK. June, 2021.
Michael at Ben’s; London, UK. June, 2021.
Jess still life; London, UK. June, 2021.
Rhea at their studio; London, UK. June, 2021.
Orfeo in his studio; London, UK. June, 2021.
Ben looking at Orfeo’s drawings; London, UK. June, 2021.
Orfeo during his opening at Sapling gallery; London, UK. June, 2021.
My covid tests laid out on the floor in Ben’s kitchen; London, UK. May, 2021.
London, UK. May, 2021.
My “residency” at Ben’s house; London, UK. May, 2021.
the back of Ben’s head at breakfast; London, UK. May, 2021.
Self-portrait holding daisies (Ben’s kitchen); London, UK. May, 2021.
Ebun; London, UK. June, 2021.
Olamiju at home, Trellick Tower. London, UK. June, 2021.
Olamiju at home; London, UK. June, 2021.
The view from Olamiju’s apartment, Trellick Tower. London, UK. June, 2021.
March 09, 2021.
Trying to make images that are unsuccessful, unresolved, repellant.
Notes from March 2021.
I’m less and less interested in photography as a 1:1 representation. My attraction to images is in their failure. I often find myself honing in on their physical faults – a bit of scratched emulsion on the surface or a face rendered an indistinct blur. Lacking a physical relationship to my practice of photography (my search for a public/coop darkroom in a new city came to an abrupt halt w/ covid, and my will to “make photos” with any sort of premeditation has waned without the physical practice) has led to a different way of working. I guess the seeds for this new approach were beginning to be sewn at the end of my time in school, when accidentally re-contextualizing two photographs – one taken at the Parthenon, and one on Myrtle Avenue – gave way to a series of thoughts about infrastructure, antiquity, and ruin as a bodily relationship. When I do feel inspired to play with images, my priority has been editing and recombining the existing – cheapening the value of the photo, reducing it to component parts, obscuring those parts, straining them through thin sieves – the scanner bed, desktop printer, the loupe – again and again, in an attempt to maybe find the interior? It’s like adding layers of plaster or clay to the exterior of a structure, just to create a fortified enough shape to withstand its center being hollowed out. What is a photograph if not the truth and what is the truth if not impossible to find [and if a photo is not the truth (which I wholly believe it isn’t) then once again, what is a photo?]
Gucci Beauty by Octavia Bürgel for 032c; New York City, NY. November, 2020.
Art Direction: Ben Broome, Octavia Bürgel
Photography: Octavia Bürgel
Talent: Octavia Bürgel
Jinan; Bergsteinsee, Germany. August, 2020.
Charm; Bergsteinsee, Germany. August, 2020.
Mariama (and Charm); Bergsteinsee, Germany. August, 2020.
Nunguja; Bergsteinsee, Germany. August, 2020.
Venus; Weißensee, Berlin, Germany. August, 2020.
Berlin, Germany. August, 2020.
Studies for Gucci Bloom, fucking around with my scanner; Berlin, Germany. August, 2020.
Moving out of my apartment; Berlin, Germany. March, 2020.
Self-portrait while moving out of my apartment; Berlin, Germany. March, 2020.
Test print; Berlin, Germany. March, 2020.
Ben; London, UK. February, 2020.
Hector; London, UK. February, 2020.
Jasper; London, UK. February, 2020.
OB with his billboard; London, UK. February, 2020.
London, UK. February, 2020.
Big Empty Space; London, UK. January, 2020.
Big Empty Space; London, UK. January, 2020.
Berlin, Germany. Christmas, 2020.
My Mom’s Warhol Moment, on the occasion of her 50th birthday; New York City, NY. November, 2019.
Ari; Brooklyn, NY. November, 2019.
Kara; Brooklyn, NY. November, 2019.
Hilton Als at the opening dinner for “From Black and White to Living Color: The Collected Motion Pictures and Accompanying Documents of Kara E. Walker, Artist”; London, UK. October, 2019.
Emmanuel arriving in Versailles; Versailles, France. October, 2019.
Gregory on the grounds of Versailles; Versailles, France. October, 2019.
The edges of Versailles; Versailles, France. October, 2019.
My former next door neighbor, David, sitting on his porch; Oberlin, Ohio. September, 2019.
Damani sitting on his porch. Oberlin, Ohio. September, 2019.
Mom; London, UK. September, 2019.
A quiet moment after the opening; London, UK. September, 2019.
Kara and June, June and Kara; London, UK. September, 2019.
June's niece, Melinda, holding the high school portrait of her that still lives in her husband's wallet; London, UK. September, 2019.
Flight paths intersecting over the Tate Modern; London, UK. October, 2019.
Damani at his house; Oberlin, Ohio. September, 2019.
Damani smoking; Cape Cod, Massachusetts. August, 2019.
Laura-Sage and Akil; Fort Greene Park, Brooklyn, NY. August, 2019.
Laura-Sage and Akil; Fort Greene, Brooklyn, NY. August, 2019.
Akil wearing Moshood, just before the store moved to Bed-Stuy. Fort Greene, Brooklyn, NY. August, 2019.
From a zine I made for Jordan; New York City, NY. Summer, 2019.
Shani on her birthday; Brooklyn, NY. August, 2018.
Emma playing Scrabble with Ford on our porch; Oberlin, Ohio. August, 2018.
Before the Studio Museum Gala; New York City, NY. October, 2018.
Klaus talking; New York City, NY. November, 2018.
Kara at Asakusa Shrine; Tokyo, Japan. December, 2018.
Preparing for Black History Month festivities; Oberlin, Ohio. February, 2018.
Zac; Brooklyn, NY. 2017.
Cece; Oberlin, Ohio. 2017.
Endia; Oberlin, Ohio. 2017.
Lucas; Los Angeles, California. August, 2016.
Kara; Atlanta, Georgia. October, 2015.
Zenobia at the beach; Coney Island, New York. June, 2016.
My aunt Christiane making coffee a few days before the funeral; Horn am Bodensee, Germany. October, 2015.
Johannes and Artur; Horn am Bodensee, Germany. October, 2015.
Klaus; Horn am Bodensee, Germany. October, 2015.
Alyssa at the beach; Coney Island, New York. June, 2016.
Christiane and Helmut; Horn am Bodensee, Germany. October, 2015.
Addie; New York City, NY. 2015.
Thank God for Salvation; New York City, NY. 2015.
Jordan at home; New York City, NY. 2015.
Charles at home; New York City, NY. 2015.
Donna at home; New York City, NY. 2015.
Happiness; New York City, NY. 2015.
Shani and Rayna; New York City, NY. 2015.
Brooklyn, NY. 2015.
My library view; Oberlin, Ohio. 2015.
Austin, Davis and Amalia at Crown Fried Chicken; New York City, NY. 2015.
New York City, NY. 2015.
Rosie; Oberlin, Ohio. 2015.
Crash; Berlin, Germany. 2015.
Jordan at a house party; New York City, NY. 2015.