My name is Malia Schlaefer, and my life is juicy, dirty, vain, shameful, pretty, rash, ritualistic, visceral, and sometimes playful. For the past six years I have been capturing me in a series of photographs called “Playthings.”
My primary inspiration and tool for this project is my own body: what I choose to do with it, to it, and put on it.  The pictures originate from my physicality’s shape, flaws, fears, desires and secrets. From this I started seeing self-portraits in messy puddles and bowls of luscious juicy peaches with flies on them.  I tend to dissect and chop up the body with my camera, singling out one part of the body with the frame to fully examine it. 
Whilst working on this series, I began taking greater control of my photographic process. Utilizing actors, models, props, lighting, toys and settings, I create situational scenes to shoot: the process of taking these pictures is as much an art as the final photo.  I mix these constructed images with my ‘self portraits’ in a way where they can lend information to the other image, telling more of a story. My photographs are fashioned in ways that blur the line between the constructed and captured image.
“Playthings” navigates a voyeuristic journey that brings the viewer in and out of personal rituals.  These images seep into my consciousness, fogrming a document of curiosity, discomfort and beauty. I disclose these private images in order to challenge values within society and myself. 
My next photographic project delves into the hot topic of desire. I am in the process of talking to women about their biggest sexual fantasy:  if they could have anything, what would that look like?  I am then decadently recreating the fantasies and photographing them. From my initial conversations with women about this project I am amazed, inspired, and especially excited to see the various fantasies of different women in one place.  I believe seeing all kinds of orientations, ages, shapes, and tastes will be a truly titillating, provocative, surprising, and stimulating experience for myself and viewers alike. This work shows in the ‘Fantasy’ exhibit at the Femina Potens Art Gallery, in San Francisco, this July 2009 (http://www.feminapotens.org).
I was born in the desert in Tucson, Arizona. I completed my BA in Photography at the University of San Diego.  Then I continued some post-bach studies at the San Francisco Art Institute.  I currently reside in the Mission District in San Francisco, California.  You can see more of my work at: http://www.maliaschlaefer.com
.

Tags

See All Tags (3)