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THE EXORCISM

111213 / Photography: Nicholas Xav. Low | Assistants: Chris Lim, Huang QX | Logistics: Kelly Lim, Per JW | Art Direction: Nicholas Xav. Low | Stylist: Nicholas Xav. Low | Makeup: Jescinda Teo | Model: Jescinda Teo

 

Featured: NOISE SG 2014 Bus Stop Ad

Looking back at this past year, I feel like I've been tormented and haunted by my own demons of depression and insecurities. Demons that I created. As Stephen King said "Monsters are real, and ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win."Yes, sometimes they win. And I believe we all have our own demons. In one form or another.

 

An exorcism has a negative connotation, it is usually viewed as a dark, demonic ritual. But I see it as a ritual of victory. Something that is worth fireworks. An exorcism should be viewed as liberation, freedom and peace. A work of God - intervening in our lives to save us from evil. A victory we ought to remember. And similarly, we all try to exorcise our own demons. We are the exorcist to our own negativity, darkness, fears, lies, guilt, shame, self-pity... We try to make peace with these demons. Hoping to find liberation.

 

In the first 2 photographs, she is seen being in pain and holding horns to her head representing the devil. These two dark and eerie photographs symbolises the initial stage in the journey ofovercoming our dislikes about ourselves where we are being consumed by the negative thoughts. Our minds become the demons we have to overcome – we are our own monsters.

Subsequently we see her in the midst of a ritual. Like the painful process of an exorcism, I believe thejourney of coming to terms with what we dislike about ourselves or accepting our failures could beequally challenging.

And in the last photograph, she walks out of a bath tub. This final picture symbolises victory andpurity. Through the painful exorcism, she has reached the end of her journey and is finally clean ofher demons, clean of her insecurities.

 

 

Click here to view the process of conceptualising + mini blog about shoot day

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