Artist Statement

Sophie Barley

Photographer

Since Sophie Barley began as a photographer she has explored many different genres of the art form. Her current portfolio contains various pieces of work from all photographic aspects including documentary, wedding and portrait photography. She revels in the different environments that each genre creates.

Although Sophie enjoys producing all forms of photography, her main love is for creating works of art that involve the portrayal of a nude body in an abstract way. Her fascination with the female form has allowed Sophie to develop her own photographic style in which she can express her personal view of beauty through the camera lens.

Sophie Barley credits her love of photography to the fashion and still life photographer Nick Knight. It he that has inspired so many of her personal projects and it is he that she believes has taught her not to be afraid of expression and nudism. Sophie also tributes her love of the female form itself to a local sculptor and artist Julian Cox. It is his appreciation for the female body from an art perspective rather than a sexual viewpoint that inspires great amounts of respect for him within Sophie’s thoughts.

Sophie has experimented over time with many different angles and views to try and capture a female form in its most beautiful light. She shies away from the cliché of women in typical pornographic style photographs and strives to create her own idea of beauty to convey to the world.

Minimalist lighting is the best type to accentuate the female form; Sophie feels lighting can be over used and sometimes can take attention away from the subject. By using minimal lighting in specific places Sophie feels that it controls the reality of the female form in a beautiful way.

Props are used within her images to ensure that the photographs fall within the fine art genre rather than the erotic category.