How Danielle Quenell Makes Lovely Conceptual Images

“This sequence was impressed by all these issues, however very particularly by the work of Carl Jung and the French thinker Gaston Bachelard,” explains photographer Danielle Quenell about her sequence Spatial Primitives. “They each wrote extensively on the psychological elements of bodily house and structure– how we form it and the way it, in flip, shapes us.” When you think about that Danielle did this venture in the course of the pandemic whereas dwelling in a studio condominium, it turns into extra fascinating. A part of the American Dream is to have an enormous three-bedroom home with a big household, a picket fence, and all. However that dream has fallen out of favor for many of us. Danielle embraced the gap from folks as she let her creativity circulate freely.

As an adolescent, photographer Danielle Quenell frequented second-hand shops method earlier than it was the cool factor to do. Like many people right now, she rescued classic cameras from junk bins. When she discovered one thing she appreciated, she took it residence and figured it out. Then she began experimenting with self-portraiture. It’s a part of how she was in a position to discover “inside states” that she didn’t have one other technique to specific. Her venture, Spatial Primitives, is an enchanting exploration of this. Danielle’s strategy is extra according to a photographer like Lidia Vives, who additionally turned extra inventive throughout this time alone. Different photographers like Brian Bowen Smith, Kent Corley, and Chris Hoare frolicked exploring as safely as they might. The variations in the way in which extra introverted photographers approached their very own vs. extroverted are fairly stark. Danielle used herself as her topic in her work, attempting to get into probably the most inhabitable locations inside her residence.

“The concept of possession of house began to appear type of absurd after I was confined to it, and but I had this concept that if I had been paying for all of it, I’ll as nicely use it,” she states in an interview with the Phoblographer. “I used to be additionally concerned about looking for new methods to inhabit the house and deliberately positioning myself in components of the condominium I might solely assume had not been utilized in that method,” Danielle intimates she was in all probability getting in contact together with her internal little one whereas doing this.

“…nobody might inform me to not climb into the highest of the linen closet or the milk cabinet.”

Danielle explains that she’s very a lot an introverted photographer. She makes use of the medium to discover emotional, psychological, and religious states. So with this sequence, Danielle felt she could possibly be as playful as she wished. “I felt an intense freedom to play and discover my relationship (each bodily and psychological) to the condominium,” she stated. “After I left on the finish of my lease, I felt virtually as if I had been leaving a buddy behind and puzzled if something of my time there would stay.”

Her inspiration comes from issues not essentially inside images. Among the seeds are planted from books. Others are from conversations. And within the purest type of imagery, others come from her personal goals. Finally, it lead her deeper into her inventive practices, one thing she feels continues to be evolving. 

Upon studying her description of Spatial Primitives, I used to be curious. This curiosity stemmed from work I discovered to be positively beautiful. Danielle emphasizes muted palettes and stark distinction to immediate the viewer to concentrate to particular issues within the scenes.

Danielle Quenell’s Important Digital camera Gear

Right here’s what Danielle Quenell makes use of and a bit of information about every of them from her.

• Yashica Mat-124: I’ve had this digicam since I used to be 16. The self-timer continues to be kicking and really helpful for self-portraits. It’s additionally comparatively mild and simple to maneuver round with. 
• Gossen Luna-Professional mild meter: A buddy despatched this to me when my first meter lastly died a few years in the past, and it’s been a reliably correct little buddy. 
• Tripod: I’m a glutton for punishment and acquired the world’s heaviest classic Gitzo at an property sale for $20. I do know there are lighter choices on the market, however they’re simply not as fairly.
• Polaroid SX70: Say what you’ll about immediate images, however in the correct fingers, this digicam can flip a panorama or portrait right into a painterly imaginative and prescient. 

About Danielle Quenell

Danielle Quenell is a author and photographer primarily based within the Pacific Northwest. Her work goals to transcend the particular second of its creation and reveal the inconsistencies in our experiences of time and bodily house.

By embracing a spread of know-how and processes— and infrequently working in discovered or discontinued movie and paper inventory— each {photograph} turns into an train in vertical time: a celebration of deliberate slowness, decay and imperfection.

All pictures by Danielle Quenell. Used with permission. For extra, please visit her website and Instagram. Need to be featured? Click on right here to see how.