The Human Body as a Color Block

Interview by Lia Johnson

With a rich and deep background of artistic references, and being interested in galleries and museums since she was a child, Arielle captures the world in an unconventional way, proving that a drab and gray reality can be turned into a world full of winks to color. Not only the garments and the poses, but also the environment where the shoot takes place, shape all together a playful scene. We talk with her to deepen in what happens when one is so young and talented and has so much in her head to tell.

Her visual language is inspired by the “uncomfortable positions” she has been in throughout her life. “Moving from NYC to a small town in South Carolina at a young age was an extremely tough transition, which turned into depression, and eventually into depersonalization. I felt, and still feel to a certain extent, that my body was something that I was renting or that was given to me… It was a time of too many questions and very little answers.”

More so, garments play a significant role in molding boundaries, in determining whether a body will be at one with reality; translate as yet another splash of color in the urban landscape or reveal itself as the scene’s protagonists. “The feelings of being an outsider or being comfortable in your environment are where the clothes come into play… This is how I show unity and anomaly.”

Twisted into arguably challenging poses, her models remind us of Erwin Wurm’s One Minute Sculptures. “It’s about creating a space for my subjects to feel un-judged. I don’t want to hurt anyone or make models feel entirely exhausted. It’s more about gently pushing someone to move out of their comfort zone and trying something new.”

But photography and fashion aren’t the only ways of substantiating perception; Bobb-Willis confides in music as well. “Music validates whatever I’m feeling in a certain moment. It emphasizes whatever state of mind I’m in, which in return leads me to creating what I do! My dad first started out in the music industry as a house music and radio DJ, so growing up that’s what we would listen to. As a kid, I hated it, but now I listen to a lot of electronic music.