imbricate

homework

2010-10-18T10:43:00.004+03:00

Few shots of our home at the moment, from the living room. The teal office drawer was saved from a dumpster in the Helsinki Center, near the book publisher Tammi's headquarters. It's a shame that so many enterprises choose to ditch old, full metal pieces in favour of modern chipboard furniture. A lot of our furniture is bought from flea-markets, found or given away to us for free.
I'm a guy who is nuts about images; cards, photos and paper-clippings, so the drawer mentioned earlier is also a great place to attach collections of misc. clippings, especially go to- reminders of art exhibitions and other happenings. I love to assemble postcards into collections as well. Lately I've been thinking about painting a huge plywood board with an interesting colour and adding some quirky text to it.

1 The clock is made by me, it was a junior high school work which I later stained dark. The letter B was found inside the teal office drawer. Lamp is from Ikea.

2 We have huge windows in the living room and nice windowpanes around the place. When they're not overloaded with paper and litter, they're a good place to assemble collections of beautiful items. Now there's a vase bought from a closeout sales, Ikea glass vase used as a storage place for papers, vintage Selena-radio and two beautiful jars found at the recycling center.

5 Banana boxes used a shelving system for magazines and books.

6/7 Laser cut cardboard letters, paper clipping, flyers and cards

click to see images larger

lindontinker fw 09/10

2010-05-02T18:06:00.002+03:00

lindontinker accessories, photographed last fall.

Make-up: me&Pilvi
Model: Pilvi
Some in sale at Vaudeville Boutique.

(click for second version)

last day of october

2010-03-26T08:34:00.001+02:00

Traveling photos of a business and leisure trip to Tampere last October. We traveled to visit Vaudeville Boutique and see some art exhibitions, and to enjoy the easygoing and friendly mood of the town. A good day spent mainly outdoors, breathing the cool, crystal clear air, photographing and having no rush at all.

Photos from the Boutique. The shop is beautiful, and full of delicious products. In the second picture Q is wearing a sequin hairbow made by me & lindontinker.

The fall was crisp, and quite cold too. Funny to look at these pictures now, when it's a totally different season. The colours are similar, but the mood is not the same at all. Now I wait for the sun, wait to see the colours again, back then I was silently welcoming the snow, darkness and coldness, saying farewell to the sun.

We visited an art exhibition "FLASH!" featuring kinetic and light art at Sara Hildén art museum. The building was austere yet beautiful, and some walls offered a great background for the silver- and sequin decorated dress Q was wearing (the dress was made from scratch by me in three days for a Patrick Wolf gig ). An impulsive ghetto-fashion-photography shoot followed. The place would be interesting setting for a more serious photoshoot as well. Some of the pieces in the exhibition were clearly old and quite boring, but there was many inspiring and beautiful works as well. The main work, a huge cylinder with rotating light-reflecting pieces inside was impressive.

autumn dripple

2010-03-25T20:00:00.006+02:00

Photos from last autumn. The spattered textures of molded aspen leaves and the iridescent colours of maples were beautiful.

Make-up: me
Model: Siiri

blue roses

2010-02-08T17:14:00.003+02:00

Studio shoot of a hairpiece by lindontinker from last October.

Wardrobe: dark blue rose headpiece and grey dress by lindontinker
Make-up&Styling: me
Model: Siiri

(See a slightly different version via link)

Make-up shots taken the day before the shoot.

greme de la garderob

2010-01-02T17:14:00.010+02:00

I find the aesthetics and the nostalgia of lolita-style quite fascinating. I'm a sucker for fairytales and make-believe, and I've always loved the glamorousness and grandeur of historical costume-dramas. I've been planning lolita-photoshoots with a fashion-forward twist and good-quality finish, and hopefully next summer we'll make something very beautiful together with my acquaintances and friends. These images are from a semi-privet flea-market happening organized by few members of Enfant Terrible, a Finnish lolita- and streetsyle community. The happening was held at Villipuutarha, a very beautiful and extraordinary café at Kallio district in Helsinki. I'm looking forward to photographing this kind of happenings again.

helsinki vintage 2009

2010-01-02T16:52:00.007+02:00

From Helsinki Vintage Fair at Kaapelitehdas 27.9.2009. Makeover-award for the inventor of the slogan of the happening and two snapshots of Q wearing the first lindontinker headpiece.

in the reeds

2010-01-02T15:21:00.005+02:00

(Preparing for the shoot)

Collaboration with naou.
Wardrobe: short jacket by naou, hairpiece lindontinker, tuille skirt Morticia, shoes Dinsko.
Make-up&Styling: collab by me and naou
Model: naou

She loved the wet whisper of silt
when the tidewater seeped away
and the estuary rose to the town
through copper light
(John Burnside/Pisces/Selected Poems)

indian summer

2009-12-07T00:46:00.004+02:00

Slapdash preparations, riding our bikes to the location, high sun in the end of the summer, trying to capture the light that's still left. And the best things of shooting with people you've known for years: casual mood, trust and instant leaves.

Wardrobe: misc
Make-up&Styling: me
Model: Siiri

white gold/20' inspiration

2009-11-14T08:33:00.008+02:00

For about a year ago I stumbled on a beautiful chiffon fabric, and had an idea for the dress seen in these photographs immediately. The fabric is pale cream coloured with faint gold pinstripes, very diaphanous and lightweight, perfect inspiration for a slightly nostalgic, classic dress. At the same time I found the pattered satin to match the chiffon, and sketched the dress as soon as I got home. I asked Q if she'd like to have a new dress, and was granted to get to measure her for perfect fit. The top part of the dress is made to resemble the flapper style and is totally flat, whereas the hem falling from an empire waistline is loose and gathered. In the waistline there is a golden frame where one can position a picture of one's choice. I made some example images of vintage photographs and musicians of Q's liking.

The ensemble was perfected with pearl and gold jewellery of my design, vintage shoes, handbag and a hat tinkered by me. The shoes - though beautiful in form - needed a fresh layer of paint and some decoration, the handbag was originally dark brown and had to be painted white to match and the hat just required a light touch-up with buttons and feathers. These were then delivered in matching boxes with glamorous graphics designed by yours truly.

Hair&Makeup: Q&A
Dress&Accessories: Me
Model: Q
Location: Eira District/Helsinki

light field and blue roses

2009-10-10T19:00:00.009+03:00

Preparation for the shoot, detail shot of the hairband.

With no deadlines for personal work, I tend to post-process my images too slowly. Two weeks would be fine, but over two months is no good. Sometimes it's necessary to give more time to the pictures, to ponder and consider cropping, colours, pictures chosen to be post, but on this case it was just lack of programs on my computer and a hint of indolence.
I'd been wanting to shoot this kind of lolita look with an alternative silhouette for some time, and especially wanted to have very puffy curly hair. I stumbled on this beautiful recycled fabric with blue rose print, and contacted a model I'd met a year earlier. Luckily, she was still willing to model, and after some sewing and tinkering we had ourselves a great photoshoot.

Dress&Accessories: Me
Makeup&Assistance: Q
Model: Maria

Follow links to see full images.

summer memories: kruunuvuori

2009-10-04T19:48:00.007+03:00

There is an area near Old Town Bay in Helsinki where there used to be a lot of wealthy people's villas in the nineteenth and twentieth century. Now the villas are neglected, left to decay and rot. Only few are actually left standing, these tattooed with graffiti, yards sprinkled with broken glass and rooms floating with litter and newspapers from the eighties. I have known about these villas for few years, but I visited the area not until this summer. Last years to see the old buildings really, the area is to be build and constructed soon. Amazing place for photoshoots with a historical, worn-out look, this place filled with the feeling of being forgotten by everything else except time. Photographed the buildings and took some shots of Q as well.

summer memories: rowan island

2009-10-04T19:23:00.006+03:00

Now that October kicks in and sun sets at seven in the evening, memories of summer float away, they hide from the rain, wind and cold. Summer seems to last forever when it's in full bloom, and next moment it's gone, and the long wait for spring starts again. Looking at images taken in the full light of some three months brings it back, briefly, but so that I remember how the dripping light in your arms feels like, the taste of cherries returns, the scent of grass and warm ocean dashes in, the fragrance of lime flowers and the feather-light breeze is in my nostrils and in my hair for a moment, just to fade off again with the dusky fall night.

Visited Rowan Island with Q.
Light sea breeze, white warm sand under bare feet, cries of gulls and round marks in the wet sand.

Last image by Q/naou

crystal hay

2009-10-03T20:35:00.003+03:00

Haze crowns weeds with crystal pearls, in the golden light of morning and fading glow of evening.

sombre nymphaea

2009-10-03T18:40:00.008+03:00

When I was a kid I loved fairytales and folklore. I still do, stories by Brothers Grimm are especially fine reading for evenings. I remember favouring the stories of people of the water, kelpies and necks. There was something in the relations to the water that made the special spark; maybe it was the darkness of the muddy lake of my grandmothers place, or the silken brown river near us, or the sea that's scent I've always adored. Whatever the reason, water and the creatures of it fascinate me. All winter I thought about shoots that would bring alive the stories I'd been reading, and when summer grew old I wanted to try some of my ideas.

This shoot was rather difficult, it required the model to go into the water and stay there for quite a while, photographer and assistant staying at the ferry. First there was the question of the water lilies, they were late to bloom and we were unsure whether there would even be any. Nature was however favourable, and the weather turned out fine as well so we did catch a glimpse of the lady of the lake...

Before the shoot.

Follow links to full view.

Thank you Q so much for modeling, family for lending the ferry and mom for assisting.

midsummerjam

2009-09-24T19:16:00.004+03:00

Summer light and all white ensemble. Pretty much all items recycled, vintage tuxedo vest goes really well with slightly oversized low-hanging Levis jeans.

shone out

2009-09-06T21:01:00.004+03:00

Photographies of my sister modeling an outfit composed by me. Vintage shirt and pearls, second hand platform heels, wig from Cosworx and skirt made by me.

And a sketch of the make-up design.

piquenique

2009-08-31T16:29:00.005+03:00

Summer is already fading, but images are left. I was the photographer and a roadie at a lolita picnic my friends had in Suomenlinna. No one posed, all were very relaxed despite the camera, light - just like the models - was beautiful and cakes made by Q absolutely delicious.

fiskars

2009-08-18T18:56:00.005+03:00

Fiskars is an old village with industrial background, the area producing iron and crafted items of various kind in the seventeenth century and after that. These days the village is a workplace for artists of many kinds (range goes from woodworking artisans to media artists), along the road passing by the river is cozy shops selling the produce of the own village, farther along more combined showrooms and shops. Cafeteria sells art books to go with the coffee and the Fiskars shop offers a splendid selection of clippers, scissors and knives. Summer exhibitions - this year quite of a repertory of textile art and some design to go with it - are always a pleasure. When the weather is fine, this whole place seems like another world. I shared a trip with my parents on an especially beautiful day, and photographed to remember the summer's light and the scent of the lime flowers.

chervil

2009-08-07T18:55:00.003+03:00

In the banks of wild chervils and madders with Q. White vintage vest, tutu and pendants made by me.

white forest

2009-08-07T18:24:00.003+03:00

In the forest near my childhood home, my sister modeling.

madder

2009-08-03T21:00:00.005+03:00

In the bank of madders, white starlike flowers scenting like a million tiny bottles of summer's ripe full perfume. Thank you for modeling.

mistsome

2009-08-03T19:00:00.006+03:00

I met the model of these photographs for the first time in high school. We were in a same group on an art course, working together in the making of a short documentary film. Then after some two years later I met her by coincidence and we spent some time over coffee and talked about life, art and other things of significance. I asked if I could photograph her some day since I had found her features intriguing from the very beginning. She was willing to model and I contacted her in the last days of May. The shoot was very informal, we talked and I photographed her at the same time we spent time together without too much rush or forethought imagery. I wanted to experiment with low-light conditions so the night grew long. I found out that my camera works pretty fine in dim light, and it was also very refreshing and encouraging to work spontaneously without much of a plan, to simply experiment with a new face.
As a keen lover of words I checked the etymological meaning of my models name, and learned that it is derived from an old Finnish word meaning mist or vapour. A folklore forest-goddess wrapped in shreds of mist bore the early form of the name. Smoke and vapour are fashionating in their fugitive nature, and to be able capture the beauty of a slowly curling and simultaneously dispersing formation of smoke lingering past a delicate, heavy lidded aloof face would satisfy my esthetical ambition. I'm hoping to have a change to work with her again.

glimmer trough

2009-07-24T22:42:00.004+03:00

Change is so rapid, the blooming, withering, changing of the sunlight. Did we even touch it?

past springtime

2009-07-24T22:09:00.004+03:00

Images from this spring depicting experimental make-up-shots with my sister and the quiet flourishing of flowers and ferns. Nature always offers unique images and differing, inspiring moods which endlessly sift with seasons.

vial

2009-07-21T19:14:00.004+03:00

Self-pictures from early spring

lightbreak

2009-07-21T17:47:00.002+03:00

You're viewing a newborn blog which is to include mainly photographs with some sketches and drawings featured alongside. I'm interested in many genres of photography, but my main emphasis lies in fashion and make-up shoots and food photography. I tend to write in English, but since it's not my first language I will possibly use some Finnish as well.
Feel free to leave a comment or contact me for further information, enjoy your viewing.

Amir Arisson