Kings of Drag

The Gaze.Ever since befriending feminist photographer Jo Spence in the 1970’s and being inspired by her unique 'Female Gaze', I have sought to connect with the people in my photos, to see beyond the superficial, how people dress themselves up and subsequently hide. The importance being that our society is one of lost connections and the result is a sense of isolation and alienation, something I try to redress.For me, photography involves the act of seeing and being seen. The relationship between model and photographer can be seen in the photographs. They are all real people, performers, activists and artists. They were invited to model because of their vibrancy and wit. The poses were devised between us at the time of the shoot. There was not thousands of pounds to be earned or merchandise to be promoted. My photographs are only cropped and you can see what I actually saw in my viewfinder . I was mostly 3-4 feet away from the model. I like to get in close so we can hear each other breathing, so that the clicks of the shutter do not resonate like the keys turning in a prison cell door. I try to empathise rather than objectify.I think it an important part of my process that I open my home studio, potentially making myself vulnerable, in order to achieve connections and pictures reflecting the resulting relationship between photographer and sitter, who has also taken a leap of faith, trusting and allowing me to make my art. My pictures have been praised for their honesty and realness , with no special filters. The audience sees what I see.At this age of 66, I have to keep an eye open for what is to be my legacy and how I want to be seen and remembered. What is shown in this book is 50 photos from 48,000 shots taken over 6 years. There are many more Drag Kings and Art images - Blog and LGBTQI+ Irish news - Video and NFT’s Visit my website: citizenwangstudio.com