The simple pleasures of domesticity are celebrated in Inner by Vincent Ferrané, a photography book encompassing fragments of a life lived together in lockdown.
The ambiguous title hints both at the inner circle of a relationship, precluding all others, and an inner light that here brings the body, gestures and intimate moments into sharp relief, the minutiae of a couple’s life together becoming emotional in the images’ objectivity.
‘Inner has something to do with interior, interiority and intimacy,’ Ferrané says. ‘It is a series that tries to make the link between several meanings related to intimacy; two mainly – first that of a close relationship, of a space that we share with someone and then this intimate space, this space to oneself, this interior in which one can immerse oneself. It's a space with physical elements, of course, one’s body in a room, one’s innocuous gestures, daily rituals that take place in one’s living room, on the edge of a bed, an armchair. But it is very much a mental space to which we try to have access here, an interiority which is also looked at and shared.’
Inner by Vincent Ferrané
The series was created during lockdowns spent in Paris with his partner, Armelle, in a reframing of familiarity. The intimacy between the couple, who have lived together for more than 15 years and share two children, is encapsulated in the series, which shies away from a traditional narrative, instead presenting a sequence of naturalistic snapshots.
Ferrané considers how the unexpected conditions that led to an abundance of time together adds a rawness to the quotidian, in images that are ultimately an expression of love for his partner and their shared life together.
‘How can we represent a body today, which is moreover a female body?’ Ferrané adds. ‘Wasn't there so much and so much shown on the subject until the overdose? Can we still renew this lexicon, work on what makes the exchange between a person in front of a camera and a person who photographs? Inner works on this exchange that always is at work when representing the intimate.
‘I try to show elements of this great closeness, of these desires and these pleasures that we have in being together. I probably wanted to give a notion of suspended time with these images – perhaps even the illusory idea that these things can last forever.’
INFORMATION
Inner will be available April 2022; all pre-orders receive a free limited-edition print (choice of three, signed and numbered).
