Enjoy the #PiBinterview Nº10 in the series »7 Questions for…«, with the artist Julia Peirone!

PiB: Dear Julia, would you please introduce yourself?

JP: My name is Julia Peirone and I am an artist working with photography. I live and work in Stockholm, Sweden, but I was born in Argentina in 1973.

PiB: How & when did you become involved with photography – and what does this medium mean to you?

JP: I was thirteen when I discovered photography. I felt in love with the magical process in the darkroom and the way I could see the world around me through the lense. I always been very curious and what I still love with photography is the interaction with reality the medium offer you but also how It challenge you to see reality and question it. It is like when you see through the camera you see everything much clearer and it makes me question a lot of things.

PiB: Who (or what) inspires you?

JP: A lot of things, but mostly people in the streets. It can be details or gestures that intruiges me to continue on with an idea. Also a lot of things in media, internet and movies. Here is where I often find my topics. When I look at art I can be inspire of an another artist voice and the way they relate or work with their medium or topic.

PiB: What makes a “good” photograph for you?

JP: I love photographs that makes you think or feel a lot and it is good if it disturbs you a bit. I like when small details make the photograph.

PiB: How do you define success?

JP: Success is when you know your work meant something for someone else. Everything else that you usually relate to success as money, carreer, big soloshows etc, it’s nice of course, because it gives you time to fulfill you dream of working with what you really love. But real success is to connect with the viewer in some way.

PiB: Could you please choose one image from your portfolio and share the story behind it?

JP: Often when I photograph a young girl I don’t know exactly what will happen before I meet them. Often I recognize something from myself and from my own memories and I use that to connect with her and make the picture.
When I photographed the girl in the picture Goosebear it hit me so strong when I met her, the feeling of being in that age and wanting to hide yourself/your body because you didn’t felt relaxed.
She is dressed in this red big jacket being everything else than invisible. There was something so sweet, humoristic and vulnerable in that moment and I just wanted to photograph her like that. Standing in her red jacket looking at my camera in a very shy and sweet way. I could relate so much to her and I feel in love in that moment.

PiB: What advice would you give to a photographer at the beginning of their career?

JP: To be curious , be playful and have fun. Follow your own voice. Do what interests you and your work will be good. Another thing is to train your eye. Take photos even without your camera. Just watch around you.

PiB: Which aspect of your photographic practise do you enjoy the most?

JP: There are two parts and they are the opposite from one to another.
The first very intense moment during the shooting. I love the concentration and feeling of now when I am shooting, and it challenges my ”hunter instinct”. The other is the more meditative period when I am editing my work. I spend a long time just looking at my material back and forward and thinking, choosing and building up the series.

PiB: Julia, thanks a lot for this conversation!

Editor’s note: Julia Peirone’s solo show »Girls – A Female Gaze« is on view at Dorothée Nilsson Gallery in Berlin-Tiergarten from Apr 27 — June 29 July 20, 2019, so don’t miss this opportunity for a visit!

ps: If you’d like to stay informed about future exhibitions at Dorothée Nilsson Gallery, feel free to sign up for PiB’s free, weekly E-Newsletter!