Philippa O'Brien - 'Photofables'
Photospace Gallery, 27 June - 21 July 2014

Inspired by Duane Michal's 1970s black and white photographic narrations such as The Old Man kills the Minotaur and The Bogeyman, Philippa has developed her own style of pictorial-scripts or Photofables. Each series is limited to nine images establishing a rhythm to a climactic moment. This series of photographic work playfully explores the notion of stereotypes by depicting people dressed as animals or supernatural creatures acting out a modern fable. However, unlike the tradition of the fable, usually timeless in its depiction of natures, these narratives take strange twists.
For full sequences, go to Photofables on Phillippa's website.

'Flight risk' - image 1 in sequence of 9

Artist info

Philippa OBrien is a photographer from Kingston in the South Island of New Zealand. She carved a successful career in the Costume Department of the NZ film industry before turning to photographic art.  She has a Diploma in Photography with Distinction from the School of Fine Arts at Massey University in Wellington. Drawing on her 22 years working in the film industry, O'Brien often uses sets, locations, costumes and casting to create a collection of images. All images are made on medium format film cameras.

'Blind date' - image 1 in sequence of 9