Summary
For this project, SCANable provided 3D laser scans of model Guinevere Van Seenus for use by Tim Richardson in his book, “Spiritual Machine.”
With an expansive and diverse portfolio of film and photography commissioned by a variety of clients including Estée Lauder, Bergdorf Goodman, Givenchy, Lady Gaga, NARS, Nike, and Lexus, Tim Richardson is anything but one-dimensional. But when he was signed to produce a book of his photography, he was challenged to connect the threads that run through his body of work into a single concept. Fashion, futurism, and feminine allure, all culminated into the idea of the Spiritual Machine– an exploration of human spirit and technology, and how they can beautifully coexist.
“The book is about 5 years of work. [Spiritual machine] kind of pointed me in the direction of what my visual tastes were. I wanted to take that understanding and that dialogue with the people I’ve been working with and try to put it into a more narrative world than graphic. It really became a guiding principle on the work that I was doing and became a point of comparison for everything else.”
Richardson’s work reflects his adventurous approach to his art, utilizing various methods of photographic technology such as motion capture, 3D scanning and 3D imaging. “People fall into aesthetic similarity and it’s important to try to push the envelope because images like that tend to have the most longevity.”
The result is a series of film and photos that feel otherworldly, yet reassuringly human. This familiar element emanates from his personally selected subjects – Academy Award nominated actress Rinko Kikuchi, model Guinevere Van Seenus, model/actress Tao Okamoto, and model/musician Brooke Candy. Wanting someone who would “be able to carry the character [he] was trying to create,” Richardson believes these women to have a sort of “chameleon like quality.” His emphasis on character has embedded a powerful and feminine energy into each of his portraits.
