The series ”In the Bath” came into my mind one day when was walking home from town, feeling weary of life and the weather.
It was one of those occasional days when l fall deep down into a melancholy mood, and everything feels cloudy and sad. All l wanted was a nice hot bath, with lavender oil, and l started breathing deeply, trying to imagine that beautiful smell and give a little relief to my spirit.
Then l began thinking of some pictures which l had seen maybe five years earlier, at the beginning of my photography career. The pictures were of a woman resting in a bath full of milk, which reminded me that Cleopatra used to bathe herself in milk. As I thought about how nourishing and soothing that must feel, I passed by my favorite cherry tree flowers on my shortcut home. I love their deep red colour, and their meaning is special to me because in my country, Slovakia, on the first of May, every man has to kiss their woman to ensure she will have enough love for the rest of the year. An idea started growing in my head, and l began choosing models, flowers, poses.
I became excited about bringing together my love of flowers with my passion for photographing women, showing their similarities. Flowers can be tender, soft and sweet-smelling, and sometimes untouchable like roses with their thorns. Or enigmatic like the waterlily, beautiful but mysterious as you do not know what lies beneath the water. Some women are wild like orchids, bold and sensual. Flowers can be just like women: Soft and gentle, but sometimes dangerous at the same time. Along with this is my deep enjoyment of warm fragrant baths, allowing us to switch off our brain, wash our soul, clean our thoughts. Above all, l love taking pictures of women, as they have so many emotions to tell, without words. So this combination is perfect for me, allowing me to express everything or nothing. Like womenís emotions, bathing can be functional or more deeply layered and complex.
Sometimes we just want to wash ourself to feel fresh and smell nice. Sometimes we want to cleanse ourselves of bad energy, or bury memories, take them under water and leave them there, And sometimes we just want to relax and think of nothing. This series may continue from time to time, depending on my mood, For now, women, flowers and water are my top three subjects for the foreseeable future, as through them I wash myself, as the models wash their bodies.
“Martyna ”
“Natalia ”
“Petal bath ”
“Feathers ”
