The French photographer, based in London, tells visual stories with a vintage and colorful aesthetic that probes questions of identity, self-perception, and the representation of women.
Retro, pin-up, rockabilly, fine art, Hollywood glamor, and cinematic storytelling are Elisa Miller’s workhorses. From this attractive mix emerges a photographic work that immediately catches the eye with its elaborate settings, intense colors, elaborate lighting, and vintage, old-fashioned aesthetic.
The French virtuoso, born in Paris, always dreamed of being a photographer, playing with disposable cameras as a teenager. A wish she eventually fulfilled when she moved to London in 2017, where she began experimenting with the medium, following a career as a pin-up model for retro clothing brands and classic car magazines.
Today, the rockabilly-educated artist explores the female psyche through the cinematic lens. Her “Silencio” series features female characters inspired by the films that have influenced her, including those by Georges Franju, Alfred Hitchcock, Wim Wenders, and David Lynch.
Her initiatory stories examine “questions of identity, self-perception, the effects of societal pressures on women, and the image behind the mask.”
Dressing up the moods
Her young career has quickly been honored with numerous awards, including the recent People Photographer of the Year at the International Photography Awards in 2021 and Art Photographer of the Year at Px3 in 2022.
Through ‘The Other,’ Elisa Miller invites us to consider in three chapters the minute possibilities of expressing our true selves within society, within the family unit and within ourselves.
Here she draws on Jean-Paul Sartre’s quote, “Hell is other people,” and the fascinating feminist essay, The Feminine Mystique, by the iconic Betty Friedan (1963), journalist, activist, and spokesperson for desperate housewives.
Her photographs imagine the idea of being able to express ourselves freely, to go beyond limits and have the courage to become who we are.
Her series of self-portraits was created during the 2020 lockdown. In her living room, she introduces still life scenes to better reflect the isolation, with the only contact being the telephone. A way to reach the viewer outside the frame, while exploring the concept of a double that remains hidden from the public eye.
“The Many Faces of Marie,” modelled on Marie Antoinette and her white hair syndrome, caused by the stress of the scaffold, “Like someone in love,” and her latest series “Dolly’s Diner,” continue the stages that punctuate her inner, mental, and artistic evolution.
London – England
https://elisamillerstudio.com/
Nathalie Dassa