SNAP*LUXE #29, by Bryony Shearmur

Bryony is a London born, LA based, fine art, concept and portrait photographer. Her passion for the visual arts was apparent very early on. At age 10, she saved enough money to buy her first camera, a Nikon FM2 that she still uses today. Bryony attended the St Martins School of Art where she studied photography. She also spent time working as a costume designer and photographic stylist, broadening her creative horizons and discovering an interest in, and love for textiles which play a huge part in her creative and photographic expression today. In her twenties, she decided to start a band which took her on the road for several years touring and playing music. She found herself traveling around Europe and Scandinavia, and of course, always with her camera in hand. She returned with a new body of images and returned to her first love, photography. In 2001, Bryony moved to Los Angeles and immediately began to document her new surroundings. She had her first show six months after arriving in LA. It was a collection of Fine Art nature and urban landscape pieces. Her second show was a complete departure and her first real experience shooting people, it was a turning point for Bryony. Inspired by the work of photographers like George Hurrell and Yousef Karsh, she dedicated her time to shooting editorial portraits. Her work has been featured in magazines such as Vogue, Uncut, LA Weekly, London Times Magazine, Q, Vice, Talent Monthly and many more. Her years writing and performing music made for an easy transition into the LA music scene shooting live performances for artists such as Radiohead, Kate Nash, Dido, Nine Inch Nails, Radio 4, Saadiq Raphael, Jonelle Monae and a host of up and coming bands. In 2008, Bryony was invited to visit Mali to shoot a music festival in the Sahara. This was a life changing experience for her. She discovered a new artistic voice and this body of work is a portrait of both a country and it's people. Since returning from Africa, her creative horizons have changed once again. She wanted to present the images in as many different ways as possible so she started printing on silk, weaving photograpahs from beads and finding new ways of marrying old and new technologies. She wanted to incorporate writing and other arts and crafts disciplines, in short, she returned to some of her artistic roots. These days, creating is less about a technical ability or commercial value, but about her own voice which for now is firmly rooted in a commitment to simplicity and above all expressing an idea. Bryony wanted her images to radiate her experiences as she lived them, aiming to create really beautiful things that reflect this world in all of its glory. Her images include nature, people, architecture, found-things, balloons, words, thoughts and feelings.