A huge thank you to everyone who followed our EMOTE series either on Facebook or Instagram! This was truly an exciting and challenging photo series as it was a real test of communicating vision and expectations with all of the subjects who were involved as well as their ability to tap into these words and provide an impactful representation in each image.
This is a concept I had been thinking about for several months and decided this winter to put together with the help of Loft Talent what ended up being a dream team of individuals who committed to this objective of showing that it is okay to show your emotions and to own them. A group of models (and a few actors) whose customary "headshot session" has never asked them to reveal their full bore emotional side no matter how insecure or unpolished it may have made them feel to buy-in to this concept of expressive portraits. Their sacrifices to this project both mentally and in their willingness to be emotionally open and candid are not taken lightly.
We did this project because in our current environment of vapidity, as it pertains to our response to changes in the world and in our personal lives, there has seemingly been a shift from open, honest expression and sharing to a focus more on tactfulness and stoic or rigid behavior. We believe that we are all connected by our emotions and that our ability to express ourselves and relate to each other is the lifeblood of any positive change or higher understanding of people. Ignorance is not bliss and every emotion, beautiful or ugly, strong or weak, is part of our human fabric and isn't something that should be ignored but rather expressed or released in a healthy way. This was our release and this was our expression of what it means to EMOTE.
Extending gratitude to all of the contributors to this project: Assistant - Matthew Rupe, Makeup Artist - Danielle Misra, Location - Zach Franke, and all of our models (in order of their appearance below) - Nathaniel Allbright "Deceptive" (Loft Talent), Caroline Vineyard "Intrepid" (Loft Talent), Loren Deaton "Endearing" (Loft Talent), Mario Escalante "Rage" (Loft Talent), Amber Mueller "Shattered" (Unsigned), Lauren Stoeker "Frantic" (Loft Talent), Haroon Khan "Anguished" (Loft Talent), and Kimberly Baur "Hopeful" (Unsigned).
