Anke Loots is a Cape Town based photographer with a multidisciplinary approach which stems from a design and advertising background and a close working relationship with photographer, Pieter Hugo. Anke’s work is defined by juxtaposing minimalism and attention to detail with an emphasis on utilising light and establishing connection with her subject matter.
Jagoda Wisniewska interviews Anke Loots about her project MY GIRLS.
Who are the women on your photographs?
They are all girls whom have sparked some sort of internal dialog, contributing in my personal growth as a woman.
Why do you photograph women? And how did this fascination for it start? Do you have any 'photo masters' who you look up to when you photograph people ?
MY GIRLS is a project that came into my life very organically. over the past year I’ve been photographing my close girl friends as a way to keep myself inspired and motivated in my personal work. Eventually a pattern started to form which evolved into a means to explore and deepen my female relationships. Robert Bergman and Vivian Sassen are the photographers who’s portraiture I relate to the most in my work.
The portraits you take of them are quite 'formal' and almost official but still have poetic feel to them. how do you work on combining both - formality and a feel of romanticism, can you reflect on both of those elements in your work?
When a subject allows you to connect to it through a lens, it is an incredibly tender moment. I aim to capture that vulnerability, thus enabling me to truly understand women outside of the warped way society has taught us to interact with each other. In order for me to make that moment happen, I have to approach the situation with a calm and assertive subtlety.
You use natural light for most of your portraits, it is very soft and atmospheric, is this is the favourite light you work with, why?
Having limited resources has forced me to utilise my environment a lot in my photography. I’ve grown to become very comfortable and flexible when working with available light - when its just me, my camera and reflector I can create a less intimidating space for the picture to happen. It also adds a level of challenge and mystery each time I enter a girls’ home.
How do you find yourself in the art - photo scene in South Africa? Is it a vibrant scene at the moment?
Considering our country’s history, art photography seems rather trivial when only available to a small demographic of the population. However a new generation of eyes are tapping into a realm thats humanising photography again and the rest of the world seems to be taking notice.
What are your future photographic plans? Will there be more portraits?
Many more portraits, yes! And if everything goes according to plan I’ll have MY GIRLS on show by late September.
