A Q&A with photographer Victoria Zeoli
By: Kel Gabriella
Featured image taken originally for Dazed and Confused Magazine
“I think I have always been loyal to particular themes in my photos such as flowers, darkness, pastels, religion and mythology.”
What was the subject of the first series you really started working on? Describe how your work has evolved over time (theme exploration, subject matter, etc).
My first series was a 365 project of daily self portraits. It was much easier for myself to be my subject at the time because I wasn’t very good at directing others and I hadn’t yet discovered fashion and the world of models. Now I would feel silly shooting myself. I started with conceptual ideas. I think I have always been loyal to particular themes in my photos such as flowers, darkness, pastels, religion and mythology.
Is there a particular artist that has heavily influenced you?
I love Tim Walker. I admire how he fuses imagination with fashion. His sense of color has definitely made an impact on my work as well. I hope one day I can get to that level of set design!
Do you have a series of photos you have worked on that you feel the most connected with?
‘Portal to Norway’ is probably my current favorite series. The model Kelsey was incredible and the location was so dreamy. It was a bitter winter day and it felt like we were in an enchanted forest and I really hold onto the memories of shooting there still. If I had to describe myself through images those would be the ones I choose.
My personal two favorite series of yours are Drawing Down the Moon and Flesh Mirages. Can you tell me a little bit about your process and inspiration behind these photographs?
Drawing Down the Moon is inspired by the model in it, Melanie Gaydos. I was absolutely intrigued and inspired by her before I met her. She has such a unique beauty. My story with that shoot is that she is the moon goddess, I tried to incorporate elements of mysticism and nature. That series is mostly mixed media.
Flesh Mirages started from being inspired by an episode of the Mighty Boosh. It was meant to be just a simple obscure fashion shoot, but when we got to the beach there was a vulture picking at dead fish. We were able to get pretty close to it. I snapped a ton of shots of the vulture and from that moment I wanted it to be a love story. They are on a journey through the desert and death is trying to trick them.
What do you like most about your work?
I mostly just love the process. I use film and digital, and with my film work I tend to do a little mixed media (as with Drawing Down the Moon for example I use pressed flowers and dandelions and things). I love to have an idea and attempt capturing it. Sometimes my visions don’t turn out how I want, sometimes things come together exactly how I pictured, and every once in a while things come out even better than expected. I’m not sure how anyone else sees my work, but from my perspective my photos are all memories and lessons. My work is very personal to me and I think that might hold me back in some ways, but that’s also what makes my work so important to me.
How do you get your models to interact with you the way you desire?
I let the model know my idea and what emotion I want to create, usually look by look I will tell the model what they should be doing. I take the first bit of shooting to let the model move how they do naturally so I can see what their flow is, and I mostly try to work with that. I have had to develop communication skills over the years, I was very introverted and it used to be very hard for me to direct.
From the series Homme Fleurs:
What has been your favorite commission thus far and why?
Hmm that’s a hard one, off the top of my head I did a lookbook last year for my good friends at Rearrange Us and it was monster themed, I really enjoyed that.
How do you clear your head? What do you do to relax?
I spend time with nature. I love to be in the woods, foraging or looking for animal bones. I love to sit and listen to the ocean. To relax I like to realize how small I am and how precious existence is.
Check out Victoria’s website for additional information.
