Laura Hollick - Soul Art Studio

Seeing the world with fresh eyes is the gift of children and the masterful skill of photographer Kevin Thom. He approaches each shoot like a spontaneous interlude with the heightened experience of the present moment.

With his eyes wide open he allows himself to be available for the magical occurrences of reality. Then he applies his technical savvy to capture that moment.

I have personally worked with Kevin for many years. We recently published a book of our work called ‘live your spirit’.

I asked Kevin to be part of ‘The Photographer’s Series’ because I respect his work so deeply and I was curious what he would do for his photo.

Usually when we work together I bring a million ideas to the table. I come up with the concept, costume, set and team required to make a vision happen. For this shoot we worked very differently….

Kevin was solely responsible for the concept and vision of the shoot, and my role was to be a model and support his vision as best I could.

His concept for ‘The Photographer’s Series’ shoot was inspired by a musical track called ‘String of Pearls’. Kevin wanted to create something visual to express the idea of a string of pearls.

'String of Pearls' Laura Hollick photography & concept by Kevin Thom.

To create the pearl look he had me wearing a white wig, a silk wrap and a string of pearls. Everything in the composition was selected to add to the pearly feel.

We created two versions of the ‘String of Pearls’. Both have a dreamlike quality, but one focuses on white, while the other uses blue in the background and captures more of a funky atmosphere.

I guess a string of pearls can really work with many different modes and flavors.

Which one do you feel best communicates the concept of a ‘String of pearls’?

'Pearl Shower' Laura Hollick. Photography & concept Kevin Thom

To get the inside scoop on Kevin’s creative process, you can listen in on our conversation in ‘The Photographer’s Series’ interview.

To listen to the interview with Kevin Thom click here

To learn more about Kevin visit his website at www.kevinthom.com

The mythical photographic art of Ward Shipman feels like a portal into a timeless era where goddesses are guiding every nuance, and sensual beauty is the everyday language.

I first connected with Ward about 5 years ago when I modeled for his work. At the time he was working strictly with black and white film and developing everything himself in the darkroom. We did this photoshoot for his Angle series.

Laura Hollick photographed by Ward Shipman

It is easy to take for granted the seamless blending of the figure into the architecture background. We are so accustomed to photoshoped images these days that we almost expect things to be blended and collaged together in a believable way. But, this was created entirely in the darkroom, there was no photoshop involved in creating this image!

Ward intuitively melds images together in such a magical way, he creates environmental stories through his images.

Mr. Shipman is also a school teacher. Photography is part of the curriculum that he teaches. A few years ago he realized he needed to learn digital photography and photoshop in order to stay on top of the latest knowledge regarding the development of photography.

We connected again to do another photoshoot. This time it was shot digitally in my studio against a plain background. He had full intention of transforming the image in photoshop in post production.

The resulting image is a water nympth. I feel like I was transformed into a goddess who lives and breathes in the water.

No matter what medium or tools Ward employs the essence of his work remains the same. He explores a mythical time of beauty, sensuality and interconnectedness with nature. With his new digital tools Ward has evolved his visual narratives into full on epics.

To listen to an interview with Ward Shipman click here

To learn more about Ward Shipman visit his website at www.guyinaboat.com

To listen to an interview with photographer Hoyin click here

Originally from Hong Kong, Hoyin immigrated to Canada. Struggling with the language and fitting in, he resorted to his creativity and ultimately photography to find his voice and express himself.

I connected with Hoyin over a year ago to invite him to be part of the ‘Photographer’s Series’, a project I started when I was hosting and producing ‘The Artist’s Lifestyle’ radio show on 93.3 FM CFMU. At the time I was planning on doing a full radio series interviewing photographers about their creative process and their professional journey. Through the various twists and turns of life,  I emigrated from CFMU into my own thriving business as an artist and Soul Art teacher.

Since so many of the interviews had already been recorded and so many creative photoshoots were already taken, I decided to create ‘The Photographers Series’ as a blog series. So over the next few weeks I’ll be posting the interviews and images from ‘The Photographer’s Series’.

I volunteered myself as a model to be used in one of Hoyin’s creative photographs.   I did this because I wanted to have the experience of working with him so I would feel prepared for our interview, and of course I wanted to be part of an amazing creative vision.

Laura Hollick photographed by Hoyin for The Photographer's Series.

Hoyin transformed me into a ghostly alien-like figure, which is how I imagine he must have felt coming to Canada.

There is a certain kind of isolation to his work as well as a deep mystery that intrigues me.

Laura Hollick photographed by Hoyin for The Photographer's Series.

Since moving to Canada Hoyin has become quite resourceful in finding what he needs to realize his visions.
For our photoshoot he connected with Mario and Cherie Pia Grassa a husband and wife hair and makeup team to transform me into the white person.

During our interview Hoyin shares his challenges as a photographer and his creative desires.

To listen to the Photographer’s Series interview with Hoyin click here

To learn more about Hoyin visit his website at www.hoyinsiu.com

Stephanie is a photographer, designer and photoshop artist. She is one of those rare birds who is able to spot the unseen beauty and transform it into a modern fairytale.

I first learned about her work a few years ago when she was voted Best Photographer in View Magazine.

I approached her and asked if she would be part of ‘The Photographer’s Series’, a series of interviews with select photographers from across Canada. The purpose of these interviews is to explore the vision, creative process and journey of each photographer. Part of my research involved being part of a creative photoshoot with each photographer.

For Stephanie’s shoot, she wanted to explore the idea of temptation. She used apples to reference the biblical story of Eve’s temptation, but she added her own Stephanie twist to it.

This piece is called ‘Temptation II’

During the photoshoot I learned a few things about Stephanie Bell….
1. She has birds flying around in her home.
2. She starts with a concept and let’s it grow as the ingredients come together.
3. She creates a team of support around her to help her realize her visions.
4. She is rather quiet during the creative process, but you can tell there is a lot going on inside.
5. Her post production work is labour intensive, she uses photoshop like a painting tool.

This is Stephanie Bell

To listen to the interview with Stephanie Bell CLICK HERE
To learn more about Stephanie’s work go to: www.emergingdesign.ca

To listen to interview with photographer PAULA TYMCHUK CLICK HERE

Paula Tymchuk was trained in Hollywood to do lighting for films.  She is one of the most sought after Canadian female lighting experts in the film and television industry today.  She started doing photography as a way to explore her own lighting techniques and get creative with the possibilities of light as an artistic medium.

Preparing for our interview on ‘The Photographers Series’ involved doing a creative photoshoot with Paula. Not only did this give me the opportunity to be in one of her creations but it allowed me to witness her creative process.

The shoot was held in my Soul Art studio loft and involved lots of lighting equipment. Since lighting is her native passion it made sense that her shoot would be heavy with equipment.

Here are some shots of the equipment and lighting set up Paula created for our photoshoot…

During the photoshoot it was dark, which surprised me since I knew Paula’s specialty was lighting. She selected key areas to accent, which felt like she was painting my body with light.  She was continuously scanning the set up as if looking for ways to get the light dancing.

I had no idea what the final image would look like.  I followed Paula’s guidance about where to be and what to do. She assured me the image would be transformed through photoshop when she added digitally manufactured light.

What surprised me the most about seeing Paula’s final creations was how much she creates beyond the photoshoot.  I realized the photoshoot was a mere foundation for Paula’s creative exploration.

Here are the final images from our creative photoshoot…

It is amazing to see how Paula went from our studio photoshoot to these other-worldly images.  I wondered if she knew in her minds eye what she was going to do, or if it just unfolded as she went along?

Paula Tymchuk uses light as a medium to gain entry into other worlds.  The only remaining earthly elements are the chosen areas that  provide a bridge into her techno mystical world.  Light becomes a thread that holds our world and the imaginary world together.

To listen to the interview with Paula Tymchuk click here
To learn more about Paula Tymchuk’s work go to: www.roguestormarts.com

To listen to ‘The Photographer’s Series’  interview with Pasquale Marco Veltri CLICK HERE

Many artists and photographers have attempted to capture dancing in a still image.  Some go for the alignment of a pose and others emphasize the physique of the dancer. When I was seeking out photographers to include in ‘The Photographer’s Series’ I wanted to find photographers who were exploring new and innovative ways of capturing images.

When I first connected with photographer Pasquale ‘Marco’ Veltri he told me he wanted to capture the essence of movement using a new technique he called ‘blurry images’.

Curious about how he would do this, I volunteered to dance for one of his photoshoots.

Here is the result of our photoshoot…

Laura Hollick dancing. Photographed by Pasquale Marco Veltri

As Marco got me dancing he snapped away and even got the camera dancing too.  He wanted to find out what would happen if both the dancer and the camera were moving.  The whole thing felt like a grand experiment.

I learned first hand that Marco’s true nature is a creative explorer. He diligently seeks interesting and innovative ways to capture a visual image so  it can communicate a conceptual idea or creative narrative.

When I did see the final results from our photoshoot I was surprised at the beauty and energy  he was able to capture.  There is an abstract quality that illustrates the energy of dancing.  It feels like the dancer and the dancing are one~ poetry in motion!

It made sense when I found out the Marco is also a filmmaker and recently one of his short films was screened at Cannes Film Festival.  He is definitely a creative talent on the move.

To listen to Pasquale Marco Veltri’s interview on ‘The Photographer’s Series’ CLICK HERE

Pasquale Marco Veltri

To see more of Pasquale Marco Veltri’s work www.pmveltri.com

Tom Ma’s photography caught my eye when I saw a fashion shoot he did that incorporated haute couture in distressed ghetto environments. I loved the contrast of the two extremes.

I invited Tom to be part of ‘The Photographer’s Series’ because I was so curious to experience one of his photoshoots. I wanted to experience the contrast of delicate beauty with rough chaos.

I had no idea our photoshoot would end up being dangerous and illegal!

This is what we created during our adventurous shoot…

Photo by Tom Ma. Hair/ makeup Maggie Ng. Costume and model Laura Hollick

Our photoshoot started out fairly tame and then escalated from there. He arranged for Maggie Ng to do my hair and makeup in my studio, we bonded instantly and enjoyed giggles and girl talk for about an hour before Tom arrived.  I created an elaborate costume for this shoot. Since I often create costumes for my own photoshoots it was a joy to create something with Tom’s style in mind.

Once Tom arrived it was time to head out and look for the perfect location for our shoot.  We drove around Hamilton  until we eventually found the ideal spot.

We found an abandoned factory that was in rough shape, the walls were gapping with rusted holes, the ceiling was sagging and the windows were mostly non-existent. Oh, and did I mention we had to break into the building.  Yes, it was illegal, there were signs everywhere warning that this was a NO TRESPASSING zone.   It  felt like the building could collapse at any moment!

There was an element of danger involved in order to accomplish Tom Ma’s vision.

When we finally made our way inside the abandoned factory, we could see that part of the ceiling had caved in and snow was coming through the hole, we did this shoot during the Canadian winter. There was a poetic beauty to this decaying mess. It appeared as if the history of the building was shedding its skin.

I started to see why Tom was drawn to these kinds of locations and I could see similarities between high end fashion and decaying places. They both have layers of intricate stories that bring forth a poetic quality.  Both ask that you discover beauty in a new way.

The thing I remember most about being part of Tom’s creative photoshoot is the way it just unfolded magically. We didn’t have a plan other than to find a factory, once we accomplished that task we let the situation determine how the picture would look.

Photographer Tom Ma

To listen to the interview with Tom Ma CLICK HERE

To learn more about Tom Ma www.tomma.ca
To learn more about Maggie Ng www.maggieng.com