Research – Ashvini Ray

Ashvini Ray’s work focuses on close ups on of the body finding beauty in the little details.

She states in an interview ‘the fact that these “things” essentially make up who we are’. I find this relatable to mental health because close ups of the body can not only represent the physical symptoms of mental health, but focus on the idea of body confidence. The use of black and white creates less distraction, and enables the viewer to see what they are focusing on more. It would be interesting to see this style of photography in colour, further highlighting the intensity of focusing in on the body.

Although Ray states her work finds beauty within the body, I find the work slightly unsettling, but in a good way. The intense close up’s for me highlight the imperfections, making the viewer feel uncomfortable. Focusing on specific parts of the body is something I want to focus on myself, instead of simply taking traditional portraiture style images.