Kurt Paris’s Incubus
“The human form causes desires and obsessions in many” – Kurt Paris gives us an insight into his upcoming exhibition, Incubus, with an exclusive preview of one of his photographs.
Kurt Paris literally stumbled onto the scene by coincidence when iStockphoto visited Malta in 2008. Since then, his passion and talent have helped his reputation grow manifold, and his photography has been used in magazines like Pink and by brands like Toni&Guy and Vascas.
In his first solo exhibition – opening this Saturday, November 2nd, at the Opus 64 Galerie in Sliema – he explores the human body and the dreams it excites in a photographic series of semi-abstract nudes that are set to awaken the imagination of many.
Here the lovely and hilarious Kurt, tells us about the inspiration behind Incubus, his favourite pieces, and his excitement at putting on his first solo exhibition. He’s also been generous enough to give us an exclusive look at one of the photos that will be on show at the exhibition.
- One of Kurt’s favourites and an exclusive to us.
“There have been two main inspirations behind Incubus. The first is the human form, which is arguably the most beautiful thing on the planet, and something which fascinates me greatly. And secondly, which is also related, is the idea that when you factor in things like attraction, lust and love, the human form causes desires and obsessions in many people; especially those, who like myself, were very shy at a young age. I think this stems from the fact that when it is not possible to have something – or someone, if you get my drift – in real life, imagination and dreams become a place of refuge.
“To get this across in my photography, I used masks to add an element of anonymity and mystery, and applied a pinhole technique, which allowed me to take very long exposures in order to represent ‘longer’ dreams, and to also provide a very rough, dreamlike image which represents the lack of clarity one has the morning after a dream.
“Through this, I hope people will realise that photography is more than just taking a photocopy of life and keeping it for posterity; and that there is more to photography than the sharpness and the technical clarity of an image. I also hope that as an exhibition it will help to make nude photography less taboo, which will, in turn, make it easier to find models for upcoming projects. Visual properties aside, I believe art is there to awaken emotions and so, above all, I hope people will look at the images and feel something and, obviously, like them!
“As for my favourite shot, I think I’ve given a different answer every time I’ve been asked this question. The picture I used in the invite is titled ‘Incubus’ and although it’s not my favourite aesthetically, it’s always the one I linger over the most. I also like another two: one is a particularly long exposure of a female model clasping her belly, and the other of a female sitting and clenching her knees whilst looking up. I just can’t seem to decide!
- ‘Incubus’ for the first time in its entirety.
“Finally, since it’s my first ever solo exhibition, I’m really, really – imma REALLY – excited! It has taken me quite a long time to assemble, and these photos have been waiting to see the light of day for a long time so I really can’t wait to show them off!”
Incubus: Enter the Dream will open Saturday, 2nd November 2013 at Opus 64 Galerie, Tigne’ Street, Sliema (www.opus64galerie.com). The opening times will be Monday to Friday 10:30am to 1pm and 4:30pm to 7pm; Saturdays 10:30am to 1pm; and Sundays by appointment only, and will run until Saturday, 16th November 2013. For more information on Kurt Paris, his work, or to contact him, visit www.kurtparis.com or visit his Facebook page.