Meet Stephie Devred, a creative photographer based in Fish Island. Originally from Lyon, Stephie moved to London looking for creative freedom. She met inspiration and people willing to cooperate on projects for the sake of art. Collaborating with artists every week allows Stephie to seek inspiration and create further.
When Stephie first moved to London, she started walking around Camden, Queens Park and Oxford Circus with her Polaroid to take pictures of tourists who would happily buy them for a small fee. Going from 1 gig to another, she earned her stripes by pursuing photography opportunities and ended up working as a producer.
Stephie now gets involved in a myriad of projects, from fashion to documentary and still life photography. A storyteller at heart who studied writing in France, Stephie makes a point in creating stories and unwinding the thread of a tale with pictures.
Gifted with a vast imagination, Stephie goes through life as she goes through colours: in exploration and increasingly vibrant. You won't help but notice the evolving colour palette, from deep black & white tones to faded photographs reminding us of another era. Stephie anchors herself in the future with other worldly bold colours flirting with dusky shadows.
Stephie's approach to photography is one you would call organic. In her latest work, Stephie came across a plastician online and could instantly project a collaboration between the 2 artists. The end result is an eerie atmosphere and a story of transformation between animals and aliens.
Discreet sensuality is a recurring theme in Stephie's work, focusing on body movement and modesty combined with intimacy. There is a candour in Stephie's photographs, an honesty in showing raw bodies or postures without eroticising them. Once shared to a wider audience through the soft gaze of Stephie, it then becomes up to the viewer to interpret as they wish.
Stephie also likes to explore friendships and relationships through the intimacy of her lense. I have been a big fan of her dramatic close-ups that drive a sense of familiarity with the objects. Although very well-versed with staging, Stephie adds a more personal tone to her own projects.
I was particularly struck by her series on the London Black Live Matter demonstration which took a particularly poetic aspect. Stephie Devred partnered with a poet. Her raw shots were a testimony, simple and honest. Stephie also did a series of portraits of the inhabitants of Roman Road, London. Again, her portraits captured with indulgence the underlying emotions of their every day lives. "I love capturing the individuality of people through photos." Whether she shots documentary, still life or fashion, the sincerity and humbleness in Stephie's photographs is a gift.
Another symbol of Stephie's practice evolution is her transition from analog to digital, as a way to reinvent colours and gaze into the future.
What's next? For now, look out for Stephie’s photographs in fashion magazines in September and October, but that’s not all. Stephie is turning to her first love of storytelling and is working on a scenario for a movie. Stay tuned.
