Featured Member - Jessica Polar
Jessica Polar, born in 1984 in Spain, comes from Tenerife.
After her journalism studies in Madrid of 5 years, she moved to Edinburgh for a while and has lived in Berlin since 2008, where she finds great inspiration.
Her last solo exhibition was shown in the Neon Chocolate Gallery, Berlin (2010).
Q. Can you explain what triggered your interest into Fine Art? Photography?
A. This constant need to try and freeze all the moments and the people that made me feel something special is the trigger I guess… It is each moment’s rarity or beauty that strikes me. After that, I discovered photography is a balm for me.
Q. Are there any contemporary artists you admire?
A. Always!, Jonathan Leder and Rebecca Cairns.
Q. How did everything start for you?
A. I was hooked on photography when I found an old camera at my parent’s home when I was a child. But everything started in 2007 when I took photography seriously.
Q. How do you choose your subjects?
A. They just come to me. I’m surrounded by stimulating atmospheres, with lots of stories, scenes, people, friends, but I just let myself flow into this ambience and the subjects come by themselves. It’s really easy.
Q. What are your inspirations and motivations?
A. My states of mind and my way to deal with the outside world are the main roots of my photography. My private life inspires the shoot. I bet on the body, the auto-portrait, I love the napes and the small nature’s fragments; I could say that forests, the natural light, the sea and my intimacy are the key to my inspiration.
Q. Is there a story behind your work?
A. Yes, there is always a story, sometimes it is consciously represented, sometimes unwitting but most of the time behind my work there is a real stage and a real world; that person’s story and mine.
Q. Can you talk about your favourite photography projects?
A. Not really, I can’t choose anything.
Q. Can you talk about any professional experience?
A. Right now I am focused on artists and live music shootings, most of them featured in my own music fanzine.
Q. Any collaboration with other industries?
A. I have never worked with someone in the fashion industry but this summer I will be co-working for a fashion label based in Berlin.
Q. Any challenges you have faced until now?
A. Every time I have to prepare a project!
Q. What equipment & techniques do you use?
A. I used an EOS Canon, Polaroid and a Zenit camera but in the last time I just manage my work with a Revueflex, always with fixed objectives: 35mm, 52mm and 58mm. After that, I like playing with self made filters and the natural light.
Q. Are you working on new projects currently?
A. Yes, I am working on two-fanzine publication with black and white photography, the second one entitled Bed stories. I also work on a project called “the world is run by fear, my friend” but I cannot explain more until I start the actual shooting.
Q. What are your professional ambitions and your projects for 2011?
A. I wish my work were presented in a gallery.
Q. How do you hope Pelime can help with this?
A. Promoting photographers and allowing contact between magazines, galleries and artists…
(Source: pelime.com)
