Persephone and Demeter
October 2022

Models - Hildy Harland and Helen Borthwick
Make-up: Rebecca Gilfi llan Flowers: The Wild Iris
Studio: Hidden Heights Creative Studio

I have always been inspired by Greek Mythology, and always had a soft spot for classical art. In my early 20s I went to the Vatican and saw some of the most incredible Medieval, Renaissance, Rococo and Baroque style art, and have since collected a whole book shelf of Greek Mythology books.

The ancient world fascinates me, and in particular, the story of Persephone. I don’t have the patience to paint - but I can direct a large scale photoshoot - plus I am lucky enough to know such creative and interesting people who want to join in with my mad ideas. So with this photoshoot - I thought it would be nice to experiment with the lighting to create a kind of Baroque style? Which if you look at Baroque style paintings, looks as though they only had candle light to guide them - quite dark and moody. So we recreated this in the studio by only using one light from a distance, and created moodiness with a black background. I don’t think there is a Demeter and Persephone painting, or if there is I am unaware - but we had a lot fun creating this painting style photoshoot.