Our main focus at Revival Runway is to support small, independent fashion and accessories brands from Melbourne and Australia, but we also aim to support emerging fashion creatives as well. One of the recent young creatives we have worked with is Lux Newman.
NAVIGATING THE WORLD VIA A LENS
We recently worked together with Lux on a studio photoshoot for three new fashion brands and got to chatting about how they became the popular photographer they are.
“As a neurodivergent artist, I have always found the physical world at odds with my own perspective of it. When growing up, my disability meant that I struggled with friendships and fitting in,” explains Lux when asked about how they became a photographer.
“Photography is a porthole through which I can curate a world not bound by neurotypical norms or desaturated by the harshness of reality. The lens allows me to look at the world through a glass window in which I am not judged nor pitied for my disability.
“My communication is not constrained by facial expression or social nuance. Rather, I am able to bypass the conventions of the neurotypical world and launch myself into an unspoken plane. My art can exist in a place where it is not judged by the way it interacts, speaks or moves.”
Lux says that what they love most about photography is that they can “create worlds and build a scene that is unique to the subject and bends to the creative director’s will.”
“It is a space that is not eclipsed by societal ideals or cultural norms. Rather, it is built on the visions and dreams of the people on set,” they say.
Photography allows Lux to “try to spotlight the unspoken challenges of existing in a world which was not built for [me] to exist in. I push a narrative curated by my unique experience”, says Lux.
“An existence that is so often underestimated in an industry dominated and controlled by individuals who overlook and under-represent people like me. Continuing this uphill battle is hard but it is freeing.”
AN UNDERWORLD OF SUBVERSION
Inspired by the people they meet, the experiences they have, and the world that they perceive around themselves, Lux describes their photography style as “an underworld of subversion”.
“My work centers on issues that are important to me; neurodivergence, queerness and sexuality. Whether it be a bloodied motel bathroom or an enchanted forest, I like to build worlds for people who feel like they don’t belong in this one.”
Lux loves shooting people who are “passionate about what they do as well as people who have a story to tell”.
“There is nothing more beautiful than someone who lives and breathes their art. That kind of love for creation isn’t sung about in love songs nor fabled in fantasies but is real and intoxicatingly present in people I work with,” Lux explains.
When it comes to fashion photography, Lux has traveled an eclectic path that covered all genres of photography, from weddings and product shoots, to editorial and event photography, alongside fashion.
“I enjoy a range of these styles. My favourites are ones where I am free to create and be surrounded by a team driven by their passions. I love it when set designers, stylists and fashion brand owners alike come together on one set to celebrate and create their art as well as others. Fashion photography definitely falls under this category,” Lux says.
To see more of Lux’ work, follow them on Instagram at @dj_lux__, and to book them, email [email protected].
Main image: Models Leo wearing Heroines, Gabriel Henningsen wearing Cupid’s Wedding, and Chris Young wearing sOnnet54; shot by Lux
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