Lara Gasparotto
Lara Gasparotto (1989) documents the daily lives of her friends in a seemingly simple and intimate manner. Initially she uploaded these diaristic images on her Thumblr profile, but now she is also using them to compile jigsaw collages on the walls of art galleries. She is from Liège (Belgium) and the local curators of a photo biennale spoke of her as one of the young talents that definitely cannot be missed. By all means, Lara is currently on the path of success – in March she got her first book released, but exhibitions run one after another.
When and how did you pick up photography?
I became involved in photography when I was 15 years old. I took pictures of my friends at school or during holidays with my family. When I was 14, I started studying fine arts and did it for three years. I was kind of lost when I finished my studies and I became interested in photography, although at the time I did not know anything about it. So I enrolled in the School of Photography at Saint-Luc in Liège when I was 17 years. I was a student of Alain Janssens, Emmanuelle D’Autreppe and Jean Janssis who have really given me the taste of photography. Since that time I have never stopped working feverously in photography. It appeared rapidly to me that my favourite theme was my surroundings and the strong relation I had with my friends.
How would you describe what it is that interests you in photography?
I’m interested in revealing my dreams, feelings and nostalgia trough evocative pictures of my generation. I took the pictures spontaneously during trips or hanging around in my city, so it has given me a lot of freedom to work. I like the contrast between the people and the places, and I like the way sense and meaning appear through associations.
It seems that your career has kicked off lately. But the more shows you have, the less images we see on your Thumblr. How the success has affected your photography?
Of course, having exhibitions organised and a book published is stressful and it demands a lot of work to be done. Yet, it’s a good stress, because I want to go further and achieve better quality in photography.
How did you manage to make a book?
The guys from Yellow Now and me worked together to make the most personal book. It was difficult because my pictures have been taken very recently (the oldest I took was in 2009), so it was hard to make a distance. I am never happy with myself, I always think I could be better. But I hope that in a few years I will be able to look at this book and be proud of myself.
Because we didn’t have a lot of time to make the book, it was hard, but in the end it characterises my work and me. The disorder and spontaneity… I think everybody can find a lot of interesting stories in the book, even if the style appears to be super wild.
What is your next project you are working on?
My next project is participating in exhibition in the festival Les Boutographies in France in June. Next year I’m having an exhibition first in Belgium and then in China. I have started working on a personal screenplay about youth and this summer I’m back in Ukraine. I’m also going to California and Panama in September to start a work about the youth of America.
