‘The Modern Venus’

Written and photographed by Chuyue Wen

I am a fourth-year student at SCAD Atlanta majoring in photography with a minor in fashion photography. Art has always been a big part of my life; I started painting when I was young and got into different kinds of art forms after. I discovered that photography is such a unique way to present my vision, especially coming from a background of painting. I specialize in fashion photography, but I do commercial work as well.

My photos are always personal, even though most of the time I produce work for other designers and brands. I try to come up with my own concepts and stories after I see the products or collections I need to photograph. I do not necessarily consider any of my work as super commercial — I still bring in some aspects of my fine art background into my work.

This series I chose depicts the more fine arts focused facet of me. It’s called “The Modern Venus.” I was always interested in distortion, abstraction, sex, violence and sadness, often including these ideas in most of my work. It became a signature for my work, incorporating a sense of weirdness.

I still try to produce my personal work while I am doing fashion photography. I think by doing this, it can inspire me in some way. “The Modern Venus” is a series that was inspired by Andre Kertesz. I always like looking into art history and referencing these tremendous artists.