A New Photo Exhibition Takes a Hardcore Look at Life in the South

Julia Fox’s 'PTSD' photos are not pretty pictures.

by Antwaun Sargent

May 10, 2016, 1:35pm

Julia Fox, "Baptism." All images courtesy of the artist.

In 2015, photographer and fashion designer Julia Fox took for Louisiana, camera in tow. Needing what she called “a sabbatical” from the city, she traversed the American South and shot what she witnessed. Part of what she captured appears in her new photo show, PTSD at Magic Gallery. Curated by friend and collaborator, Richie Shazam, the exhibition features a series of hardcore photographs and an iPhone video that Fox describes as art that shows audiences “a reality so far from theirs.”

“The raw honesty of this work drew me in and her ability to construct relationships and shoot from the hip—the photos are so vibrant and have so much life,” Shazam tells The Creators Project. He adds, “I wanted to build this strong story around the work and create an interior-exterior experience where you feel you are getting into the brain of Julia Fox. She sees the beauty in America’s backyard.”

Julia Fox, "Pinky"

The hazy reportage style of her C-print photographs is situational. There are two images for every one mood or person captured, a form of representation Shazam explains as a “conscious coupling that gives you an experience of Louisiana that speaks to the post-Katrina devastation of not just the physical landscape, but also the personal self-destruction.” Says Shazam, “Within the conscious coupling you see the trials and tribulations of all the people.”

"Imperfect Harmony" depicts both an arm being injected with heroin, and a white cat caught, mid-motion, in the middle of a street peering ahead. "Pinky" is both the name of a woman moving frantically in bed and the color of the sky seen midday. "Baptism" is a man showering and a fire burning.

Julia Fox, "RIP"

The six-minute camera phone video, The First Time, shows Fox lying in bed sharing an intimate moment with a female figure. It’s hard to make out exactly what they are saying, but Shazam installed a bed inside the gallery to allow viewers to sit or lay and experience the work in a similar way in which it was created. “In the video she is detailing her intimate sexual feeling,” explains Shazam. “The video adds intimacy to the room.” Beyond the references to Bayou culture, urban and rural decay, the installation and photographs seem to question the possibilities and contradictions of emotion and life.

“This show brings forth a narrative that is clear, simple and clean and allows you to explore your feelings,” Shazam notes. “I want people to not just be spectators but to really walk away knowing what PTSD means.” He adds, “We all have to constantly deal with life events that trigger us.”