A few months ago I joined this art group called RAW Artists. What is RAW you ask? RAW:natural born artists is an independent arts organization, for artists, by artists. Their mission is “to provide independent artists within the first 10 years of their career with the tools, resources and exposure needed to inspire and cultivate creativity.” Fancy, eh? They’re a good team of people for sure. So after doing my first art show with them a few months back.,

*CUE FLASHBACK*!

I got asked if I would want to display an image during fashion week combining the elements of fashion, spring and summer but in my own unique style. SURE I WILL DO FASHION. If you know me, you know I am the simplest person when it comes to my wardrobe. Awesome graphic tee, jeans, sneakers and out the door I go! 

Of course, I have the very RARE occasion when I actually try to look nice. RARE. Anywho, what better way than to be a rebel at fashion week than with my art to show something crazy, beautiful and bloody. Maybe the joke will be on me and people won’t actually get scared or think I’m a freak. I’ll update you after this Wednesday.  For now, I want to take you guys into an unexplored journey of my process of making the image. All Tolkein-g (joking and J. R.R. Tolkein, get it? Because of adventure...Okay not funny.) aside, I started my concept by knowing it would be dark, bloody and fashionable. At first I wanted to do a little red riding hood themed shoot but I ended up changing it to a snow white and bloody apple/fashionable shoot. Next thing was the casting. I thought of all my friends that modeled that had pale skin and dark hair.  None rang a bell. I went to the next best thing, Instagram. I always keep an eye out for people that follow my work that I feel like I could use them in a future shoot. I follow them (on insta, I’m not a creep) and then evaluate their day to day selfies and other awesome things they do. I had ended up following Christina a while back because she made these awesome flower crowns and because she was obviously gorgeous, duh. I remember she took a self-portrait of her with red lipstick and I immediately knew that I needed to work with her. We finally set a test shoot day and an actual shoot day. I had seen her before at shows and never said more than a “Hello” to her before I thought of photographing her so the test shoot day was our first official “speak more than one word” and first hang out day. For some strange reason I was over thinking on how the test shoot was going to go. WHAT IF SHE FREEZES UP AND IS THE MOST AWKWARD PERSON IN THE WORLD WHEN I LIFT UP MY CAMERA?! Fast forward to the day of the test shoot and she was probably the most easy going and most natural person in front of a camera. She mentioned she had only modeled one other time for a friend and it seemed like she had done it for a long time. I knew I had made the right decision.  

Two days later we went on location where the magic was going to take place. I had my partner in crime/best friend Alfonso there with me to help out and to handle business with his manly-ness and what not. We set up a few different spots in the location and made it work with one light since that was all I had.