Suzanne Dean Fantasy Portrait - Yves de Contades

Suzanne Dean, CD, Random House:
Rodchenko wrote: "One has to take several different shots of a subject, from different points of view and in different situations, as if one examined it in the round rather than looked through the same key-hole again and again."
 
I took inspiration from my love of Rodchenko’s innovative, graphic photographs.  I wanted a portrait that was both simple and complex at the same time. That incorporated his use of contrast and experimental perspective. 
 
With that in mind, I placed myself within, The Stairs, 1930. To be playful, I too wore stripes, I would echo the bold stripes of the steps. I also incorporated the original Rodchenko photograph into the portrait, by holding a book that had The Stairs wrapped round it.
Dr Cecilia d'Felice's psychological interpretation:
Suzanne Dean’s portrait feels saturated with intelligent acuity. From the long steps of learning leading up to a university, or court house - any place of intellectual authority - paralleling the stripes in Suzanne’s dress and in the book she is holding, the portrait gives a sense of playful gravity. The grey on grey tones with the lifting effect of white suggests a woman of serious pursuit, of elegance and wit, of curiosity and obsession to detail. A woman not afraid of her femininity while not using it to flatter or deceive. Slightly shy, not wanting to impose herself on the world, more obliquely engaged, left field and subtle. Looking upwards suggests seeing the bigger picture and being acutely aware of our relative insignificance. It also points to someone who actively seeks out knowledge and inspiration, who dreams creatively. A portrait of great depth and wisdom, a woman one would want to talk to, to learn from.