Yelena Yemchuk is a Ukrainian/American artist
Episode 180: Yelena Yemchuk is a Ukrainian/American photographer whose work oscillates between fashion photography and highly developed personal projects.
Yelena’s new book Mabel, Betty & Bette published by Kominek Books explores the strange world of the cinematic doppelgänger though Yemchuk’s strategic use of models who play a particular role and whose look is meant, at surface level, to pass in singular form when in fact there are 50 different models playing the same part. She also uses collage throughout the book as a way to examine tradition illustrations of femininity.
Being a multi-talented artist, many threads are woven in the rich tapestry of Yelena’s new book, but also her former bodies of work which we speak about in the episode. Of note, we spend time talking about her early years in Ukraine and her move to America at a young age which informs much of her work such as Gidropark and Mabel, Betty & Bette. It is a fascinating and deep part of the conversation.
Throughout the dialogue we speak about Yelena’s work on personal terms, but also how her work in fashion has changed and how the industry itself has been transformed over the last 20 years. We speak about influences such as Rainer Werner Fassbinder and how Yelena has come to working more on personal assignments over the past decade. Please tune in and pick up her book!!!
