roses, dusk

cover of “power, corruption and lies”, new order, 1983 (cover by peter saville)

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Ignace-Henri-Théodore Fantin-Latour, ‘a basket of roses’, the painting used for the new order album cover

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Ignace-Henri-Théodore Fantin-Latour, ‘bouquet of roses’

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Ignace-Henri-Théodore Fantin-Latour, ‘roses in a basket on a table’

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the 6 photographs of roses are mine
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i thought it might be interesting to talk about process & inspiration and these images above.

it started with the cover art done by peter saville for new order’s 1983 album ‘power, corruption & lies’. it’s a favorite of mine, and there’s something haunting about the painting of those roses (i think it’s the music, too…)

so i looked it up and found out that the painting used on the album cover is part of the collection of the national gallery in london, and it’s the work of Ignace-Henri-Théodore Fantin-Latour, a 19th century French painter who painted many flower still-lifes. i’ve been intrigued by these images ever since.

i think you have to visit london at this time of year to really understand the roses that are everywhere. it’s hard not to notice them, and i found myself drawn to them this year… snapping lots of pictures of roses, many times dead roses with dried petals, hanging at an unnatural angle. and after i saw Fantin-Latour’s paintings, i decided to take some photographs inspired by his work.

the 6 photographs above are the result. i shot the photos at dusk. there is a sense of classical beauty with roses, their shape and form. but i also think roses are haunting, melancholy, heavy. that is what i saw in Fantin-Latour’s paintings, and that is what i hoped to capture in the photographs i shot. i did not want these to be “lovely” images – i was looking for a sense of weight and of darkness – the feeling i get when i put on “power, corruption & lies” and listen to that music.