A Conversation With Esther Bellepoque

The greatest minds spoke of solitude as a source of inspiration

Photo Courtesy: Esther Bellepoque.

Esther describes her work as symbolic, abstract at times, and classic. She’s worked for Vogue UK, Wonderland, Net-aPorter amongst others. But what picked our curiosity was not her impeccable fashion work but a series of images she was posting daily through her Instagram stories. A project she called ISOLATION.

Her photographs featured objects found in her home - spoons, bottles of perfume, flowers, pressure tweezers, eggs, and duct tape - combined with metals and textiles, were few of the elements that helped us rediscover what beauty meant. An experiment of sorts, a new way to come up with work while not being able to create content the “normal way”. Her images made us feel nostalgic and hopeful at the same time. Small pieces of art were created with common elements that were overlooked in our fast-paced lives.

In what we think would’ve been an ideal situation, we would be sitting right across Esther at the Barbican Centre sipping on a cup of coffee, talking about art, fashion, beauty, and what she wished to convey through her photographs. But then again, if we had never been forced to slow down, she would have never created such a series and we would have never exchanged questions via email.

In one way or another, your pictures always tell a story. What purpose does photography have for you?

I rather answer shortly. To reach beauty.

Photo Courtesy: Esther Bellepoque.

Your work has always been directly related to fashion. What drew you to fashion photography and are you interested in exploring new areas through different mediums?

I’ve always been interested in aesthetics within a historical context. I like to think of fashion and outfits as uniforms that contain the personality and emotions of the person wearing them.

Yes indeed, I’m very interested in other fields such as interiors, printing, even other practices that have nothing to do with photography, like candle making, packaging design.

We are all getting a bit restless with lockdown restrictions, how are you coping with it all and apart from photography?

I guess like everyone else, I keep myself occupied reading, cooking, exercising, watching movies, looking for new music, doing research, catching up with old and new friends online, but also as the Italians say, sometimes practicing ‘il dolce far niente’ meaning ‘the pleasure of doing nothing’.

What’s your creative process like and what made you come up with the idea of your series ISOLATION?

My creative process relies on research. I spend days building up very detailed mood boards although I always leave a window open as it’s all about teamwork and what you see through the camera with fresh eyes.

Inspiration normally comes from history, paintings, long-dead photographers, architecture, films, textures, colors, memories, books…My background in photography comes from interiors and set design has a big weight in all my projects.

ISOLATION came up as a need to keep working and build up a new workflow while not being able to get away from home.

Photo Courtesy: Esther Bellepoque.

Can you share with us your favorite movies and music that help your creative process and act as a source of inspiration?

Films: The Pianist, Les 400 coups, La Collectionneuse, Barry Lyndon, Testament of Orpheus, Mustang, Pina, Midnight in Paris, The White Ribbon, The Lives of Others, In the Mood for Love, MAD MEN (series), I am LOVE.

Music: Serge Gainsbourg, Nils Frahm, Dorothy Ashby, Joe Pass, Michael Nyman, Bill Evans, Frederic Chopin, The Blaze, Paul Desmond, Rachmaninoff, Animal Collective, Gustav Mahler, Caribou, Rosalía, The Caretaker, Cal Tjader, Al Bowlly, Alexandre Desplat, Chilly Gonzalez, The Zombies, Frank Sinatra, Mac de Marco, Aphex Twin, Billie Holiday, Hot Chip, Metronomy, Juliette Greco, Joep Bevin, Joao Giberto, Jungle

We’d love to see London through your eyes. Tell us what you love and hate of the city, your favorite places to hang out, what’s it like being a photographer in a place that holds an amazing community for artists and what are you most looking forward to going back to once restrictions are fully lifted?

I don’t hate anything about London. The thing I love the most and what London means to me as a photographer is one word; opportunity.

Favorite places: Barbican Hall, Cadogan Hall, Neal’s Yardthe best British cheese!, Somerset house and their charming little shop, Hamiltons Gallery, Aussoline’s art-living room, Gordon’s wine bar and his funny manners bartender, RA and their elegant high ceilings restaurant, Committee of Taste for vintage furniture, The Eagle Pub (thank’s Nick!), the Barbican’s Kitchen cafe for meetings, Henry Sotheran’s antiquarian, Beton Brut gallery, Tate Modern’s book shop, Andrew Edmunds for a candlelight dinner, Labour and Wait and their meticulous selection of kitchen utensils, E5 bakery and their baguettes, Camden passage for a morning of vintage treasures hunting, Colbert and their perfect steak tartare, The tapestry room at the V&A, Highbury East and its park for a quiet walk…

I miss coming back to all those places, discovering new ones and meeting up with my dear ones.

Photos Courtesy: Esther Bellepoque.

You can find her prints for sale here: https://www.frankieandclo.com/shop