Sinclair's
work is heavily influenced by fine art, and in particular the
19th-century paintings of the Pre-Raphaelites, who she believes would
probably have adopted the medium of photography to produce their
realistic depictions of romantic and spiritual scenes had such a tool
been available to them.
"A lot of
my inspiration in the early days came from the Pre-Raphaelites and the
way they would reimagine a narrative," Sinclair explains. "I guess I'm
not interested in the raw grit of life that a camera can capture, it's
more a sense of it being able to more accurately represent what I'm
imagining."
Real and surreal
Her
imaginings often take the form of historical or allegorical figures
portrayed within scenes that employ symbolism and detail to tell a tale
about their personality or the period in which they lived.
From
Elizabeth I to Genghis Khan and Marie Antoinette, the people at the
heart of these images are brought to life through images in which
realism and surrealism converge.
In
addition to the intricate process of building the complex scenes layer
by layer, using sophisticated computer software, Sinclair also gets
hands-on in the creation of the scenery, props, costumes and hairstyles.
Agrippina - The Regal Twelve by Alexia Sinclair
For the recent Rococo
series, she even grew many of the flowers strewn around the models in
her own garden, while a lion that appears in an image of the Roman
Empress Julia Agrippina was photographed by Sinclair inside its cage at a
local circus.
A fashion influence
As
well as referencing classical paintings, Sinclair's work is strongly
influenced by the expressive outfits produced by modern fashion
designers.
During the completion
of her Masters degree from 2004-2007, Sinclair looked to the work of
designers like Alexander McQueen and Christian Lacroix, whose clothing
evoked similar styles and periods to those she herself was interested in
when developing her series The Regal Twelve.
Sinclair
sees parallels between the dream worlds created by these designers and
the theatrical way in which her artworks represent historical themes.
"I'm
not trying to recreate something like a painter of that period would
have, it's about being inspired by and understanding the period and
making it contemporary," she says. "I continually look at fashion
designers because they're also always reinterpreting the past."
Hidden surprises
Alongside
her personal work, Sinclair produces images for commercial clients such
as Qantas, Queensland Ballet and the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation.
Although she claims to
enjoy the variety and different pace of these projects, the jobs are
predominantly a way to fund her laborious personal projects.
Having
recently moved to London with her husband James and two-year-old
daughter Heidi, Sinclair is currently focusing on settling into the
rhythm of a new city before delving back into post-production on a new
set of portraits shot last year for the Rococo series.
She'll also continue developing a series called The Golden Age that she was invited to shoot using photographic supplier Phase One's new 100-megapixel camera.
The Cabinets of Curiosity, 2013 -- A Frozen Tale by Alexia Sinclair
A selection of images from the series, A Frozen Tale, were recently exhibited at the inaugural Dubai Photo Exhibition,
where their large dimensions (sometimes more than two meters in width),
rich colors and striking subjects lent them a captivating presence.
Sinclair
insists that such exhibitions offer a crucial opportunity to show the
works as they were made to be seen: "That's the reason I shoot on a
really big camera and I've always used medium format," she explains,
"because I want people to see a big piece on a wall like you would
experience a large painting. I want them to zoom right in and experience
the tiny little details that maybe only I know about."
If
you take another look at these fantastical photographs you may uncover
some hidden surprises, but their painterly quality and most intimate
secrets are only revealed when viewed up close and in person.
Source- edition.cnn
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