* All images used with permission. Please do not distribute without first contacting the artist.
Brooke Shaden was born and raised in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, near the Amish Country. She holds two degrees from Temple University, one in film and another in English.
Her square format and heavy texture are intended to create a painterly aesthetic that defeats certain boundaries of photography. Using these tools, she creates new worlds through her images.
Self portraiture does not need to be autobiographical, says Shaden, who uses it instead to place herself in unfamiliar or unreal places, often inside-out or idealized. In her work she struggles to define what it means to be human.
Shaden currently lives in Los Angeles. Her work has been exhibited locally.
"Brooke creates stunning atmosphere, her photography is so surreal and dreamy. Her woks just take you inside and whisper strange stories."
"Her pieces makes me think of Tamara de Lempickas art – the shapes, use of warm earth colors and the red fabric – I love it. The colors feel smooth and stands in deep contrasts to the dramatic scene. The background, wich looks like a scene from the romantic era, confronting the sublimity of untamed nature. The woman, standing in a neat pose affected by the wild wind which combines the two elements – woman and nature. Together this affects me in a way I cannot resist."