“I like to comment on the banality of being naked.”
With my series Flashed News I was inspired by pin-up images from the 1970s. It seemed to me that at the time the female nude subject was very much in control of the image she was creating.
We want to look good
I think that as a female photographer I have a certain responsibility when considering my subject, specifically with images of women. I don't consider the images to be sexual even though they will inevitably be interpreted as such by some. As people we want to look good and appeal to others, but in nude photography I feel the subject needs to show a certain strength and I like it when the image comments on the banality of being naked.
„Mosquitoes infected with the bacterium Wolbachia could slow the spread of viruses like Zika and Dengue.“ (Flashed News 5.5.2016)
„Plant Collapse Kills at Least 16 People in Pakistan.“ (Flashed News 5.11.2015)
Portraits develop as a friendship grows
The people I am most interested in photographing don't usually end up in my images. I find it takes a lot to approach people off the street or during a fleeting encounter, and I don't usually muster the courage I would need. That doesn't mean I am not interested in the people I do photograph - they tend to be family or friends I know well. I think it's interesting to see how portraits can develop over time as a friendship grows.
Telling the broader political story
At the moment I am trying to tie together a series of images I have been working on for the past five years. It's very personal for me, because it has its roots in my home town, but I am aiming to tell the broader political story of the USA as I see it.
„Two teams of biologists have engineered a novel breed of mosquito with malaria resistant genes in hopes of eradicating the disease.“ (Flashed News 24.11.2015)
„France to Lift Ban on Gay Men Donating Blood.“ (Flashed News 15.11.2015)
„Two teams of biologists have engineered a novel breed of mosquito with malaria resistant genes in hopes of eradicating the disease.“ (Flashed News 24.11.2015)
„Plant Collapse Kills at Least 16 People in Pakistan.“ (Flashed News 5.11.2015)
„An analysis by the World Health Organization shows that more than 9 in 10 people breathe bad air.“ (Flashed News 28.9.2016)
© Gerhardt Kellermann
Martina Borsche,
Born 1988 in Rutland, Vermont, USA
Lives and works in
München.