I was recently commissioned to take a still life to be given as a wedding present to a wonderful couple in Denmark. I absolutely love doing these as each is always bespoke to the recipient and incredibly special. The whole point of the image is to show a story in symbolism, including many items that have a personal meaning to the couple. The photograph invites the viewer to ask the question, ‘why is that relevant?’, almost like a puzzle. Every item that I have included in this photograph has been given thought and whilst some may be obviously symbolic, some are more obscure and have more relevance in classical art. An example of this includes the blowing out of the candles, representing the passing of time. More obviously, I also included the menu from the restaurant on their wedding day, tucked away behind the chessboard which represents life and family.
Whilst I am unable to reveal some of the symbolism within this image (some of the details are personal and may be undiscovered by the couple as yet), it can be said that the whole image is incredibly personal with a lot of thought and effort gone into it. A lot of the items used were generously loaned to myself by the family and some I got locally, the crab for example was courtesy of Chris at Maximus, Friday Street, Farnham, Suffolk.
These are always one off commissions for which I charge a bespoke rate, depending on numerous factors including time to source items. These make fantastic tailor made wedding or anniversary presents, steeped in special meaning and are designed to be kept for years to come, and perhaps even passed on through the generations. For further information on bespoke still life imagery feel free to get in touch.
