PCA Faculty Tara Bogart's "A Modern Hair Study" Book and Exhibition
Felix Nadar’s 1856 “Hair Study”, Tara Bogard’s inspiration:
PCA faculty Tara Bogart saw this photograph at the photo archives of the National Library of France. She couldn’t stop thinking about what that image would look like today. “A modern hair study” consists of portraits of young women photographed from behind. By focusing on the back, the viewer is forced to contend with all of the peripheral things that make each woman unique.
“In these intimate portraits I am a voyeur concentrating on a generation that is not mine. While certain ideals are often relevant to different generations, the ways in which women adorn and modify themselves often indicate the struggles of a young adult with their own ideology and individuality.
After photographing these women, I can imagine these struggles are timeless. Existing today as well as when the original Nadar portrait was taken.”
Tara recently exhibited her work in Sète at la nouvelle librairie Sétoise and was mentioned in Midi Libre. She is now working on a series of self portraits illustrating her move from Milwaukee to Paris.
Tara produced more than 130 portraits based around Nadar’s photograph and “a modern hair study” has just been published as a book.
Congratulations Tara!