'Grief is just love with nowhere to go. To accept love is to accept inevitable loss. Allowing space for love is opening a door for pain. They are two sides of the same coin. We cannot have one without the other'

In this collection, I delve into the emotional contrasts of the warmth of love, with the ever looming threat of loss. The uneasy knowing that grief will arrive. Accepting the unsettled feeling of the end that hangs over our heads is the first step towards healing. We are taught that those uneasy feelings of pain are dangerous, something to be kept to the shadows. We press them down, grieve in isolation, we treat it like a personal shame. The deep pain of a love lost will always be a part of you, and confronting this part of you is accepting an essential part of your humanity

I have called upon religious images of pain and redemption, of Mary holding Jesus, and the relationship between mother and son at a time of loss. Using warm tones and flowing hairstyles, I have portrayed the freedom of releasing the expectation to grieve in isolation, and accepting comfort in those who surround us. These images represent both love and unease, combining large, beautiful hair styles reminiscent of the Enlightenment period, with grungy, messy makeup that evokes punk rock era rebellion and freedom. These contrasts portray the duality that exists within the depths of both love and pain.

PHOTOGRAPHER – DIRECTOR Michelle Pitiris

STUDIO LIGHTING Yves Almira

MAKE UP Sara Belobrajdic

HAIR Mattthew Ashton

STYLING Matthew Ashton

SET DESIGN Matthew Ashton

HAIR ASSISTANT Athena Xie – Georgie Bools