VINCENT FERRANÉ

Iconography
XXV figures of Jeanne Damas

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publisher: Libraryman

In the expression “aesthetic canon” which structures the standard of beauty, the term “canon” refers to the idea of “rules”. These rules, however, inscribed nowhere, enact in a changing way the representation of the beauty in its dimensions certainly aesthetic but also cultural and social. Jeanne Damas is a so called successful “It girl model-businesswoman” who embodies many modern facets of a feminine ideal. She enjoys a popularity whose global reach could never have been considered before the modern era of social networks. Besides, Jeanne Damas first built this image by posting pictures of her own life: her favorite objects, her way of dressing and putting on makeup—with clothes and cosmetics from her own brand.The idea behind this series was to let Jeanne Damas re-play against a neutral background; to recreate gestures, postures, and to put back in scene elements and iconic tools that cement this public conception acclaimed by her fans and by the media. This is what ranks her as an “icon” in fashion.

The result is a study, a kind of investigation or quest for proof into the representation of the body, an enigmatic puzzle of flesh, objects and tools, which in the manner of a “cadavre exquis” brings into play the expression of these aesthetic tacit rules. The latter borrow as much from the classical “contrapposto”, the figures of “Odalisque”, of those of “femme fatale” in movies holding a cigarette, or as “Pop art” references, from the presentation of the body in a clothes e-shop than from poses while taking selfies. By bringing together these images, Iconography explains as much as it questions the elements of a popular representation of feminine beauty. 

Born in 1974 in Créteil, Vincent Ferrané lives and works in Paris. After studying science, he turned to photography in 2004. He regularly works for French and international press magazines for fashion and editorial such as Wallpaper, ELLE, Grazia and Vanity Fair or AD.
In parallel to this work, he develops personal projects, where the real adorned with signs opens to symbolic and sensitive interpretations. His personal work was lately the object of articles in The New Yorker, The British Journal of Photography, Another magazine, Wallpaper or Beaux Arts magazine.
In 2015, his project Bienvenue, consists of making a film from which he draws photograms to invent a new story. It was the subject of a solo exhibition during Les Rencontres de la photographie of Arles in La Commanderie Sainte Luce.
In 2017, Libraryman published Milky Way, a series of pictures of his wife and child during breastfeeding. This book has been largely greeted by the international press and selected in several photo festivals (2018 Athens Photo Festival, 2018 Triennal of Photography in Hamburg).

Copyright © Vincent Ferrané, all rights reserved

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