Back to Work Issue
She grew up surrounded by tropical landscapes, but now Clarissa Bonet lives in the hustle and bustle of a big city. Her 9 to 5 is on the streets of Chicago, camera in hand, ready to portray everything she sees on her daily walks.
“I pull from everyday life to craft images that depict my experience of the built environment.” says Clarissa Bonet, an American artist and photographer. She became interested in urban photography when she moved to Chicago to study. Coming from Florida, where she was born, she was captivated by the hustle and bustle of the big city, something she wasn't used to. Her photographic work, which echoes the routines and life of one of the largest American cities, couldn't be more in tune with this issue of Vogue Portugal, which portrays the return to work.
The world of photography is vast and multifaceted. Yet, your perspective on urban life stands out. What's the scent, sound, or vibe that Chicago gives off to you? Over the last decade, much of my work has centered around its heart, the city’s center. [...] When you’re able to experience a place by foot it provides a deeper and richer understanding of the landscape and the people who live within it. The concept of pedestrianism is a thread that has run through all my work, and is one of the most intriguing aspects of life in Chicago.
Tell us about your fascination with city lights. How does Chicago's light differ from dawn to dusk? Light can be a powerful transformational tool. It has the ability to shift our perception and experience of a place. [...] When I think of picture-making I often think of light, composition, camera placement, etc., as a set of strategies or tools I can use to communicate to my viewer. [...] Throughout the day, the light shifts radically downtown as it sweeps throughout the city's tall structures, creating a play of light and shadow on the sidewalks below. As we approach dusk in the city, it radically shifts again, and the buildings that were once impenetrable by day become transparent, revealing those who reside inside.
How did you start doing photography? I was fortunate to be exposed to art and the idea of working as an artist at a young age. [...] It opened my eyes to the creative possibilities, and I knew early-on I wanted to be an artist. During my sophomore year in high school, I took a photography class and I knew pretty quickly that I wanted to invest my time and energy into learning and honing my craft.
What is your creative process? My process starts with observation. Invariably, I walk extensively to observe the built world and the people who move through it before I begin taking preliminary snap-shots. I then incorporate research into the process and experiment with various photographic techniques until everything clicks. [...] While the process might sound straightforward, a project can span years before fully formed as I progress through these stages of my process.
Amidst the city hustle, how do you find those serene and fleeting moments you capture in your shots? I often don’t. All of my work is staged [...] and based on personal experience, observation, and research. [...] I take snapshots with my cell phone and make sketches of my experiences in a notebook. These become the foundation and inspiration for the final images in my project, City Space. [...] Just because a photograph was taken the precise moment an event happens, it does not mean that it can accurately communicate to the viewer what that moment felt like. [...] I am after the intangible experience of the city, which is not only descriptive, but perhaps magical, psychological, and even a bit lonely.
Your shots often display the relationship between people and the built environment. How would you describe this dance between the human and the urban? I began to pay attention to the way the built environment made me feel and what it was like to move through these spaces. Navigating the city is very much like a dance between the architecture and the inhabitants moving through space along with you. I find it fascinating that we don’t collide with one another more often!
What's the image, not caught by the lens, that you hold onto before drifting off to sleep? When I don’t catch the light, then the image I missed lingers in my mind for a long while. [...] There's a downtown location I've been wanting to shoot for a year. Having missed the ideal light last year, I’m actively waiting for it to hit again so I can capture the perfect image.
If given a chance to shoot any city in the world, no holds barred, which would it be and why? There are a few cities I would love to make work in. Right now I’m working on a new project that looks at the city as a locus of constant change and regeneration. I’ve been photographing construction sites, and possibly Toronto is on my radar to photograph soon. They’re in a bit of a building boom and so it would be a good city to explore photographically. Excluding my current project, I’ve always been drawn to photographing highly dense cities, like Hong Kong.
What's the story you hope future generations will tell through your photographs? With my work, I aim to showcase the beauty of everyday life and the intricacies of living in a constructed environment. [...] We inhabit a fast-paced world and often the nuances of daily life are overlooked as our attention can be lost to technology and social media. It’s my hope that people can find a way to immerse themselves in my work, and then reconsider how they view the world.
Translated from the original on The Coming Back Issue, published September 2023. Full stories and credits on the print issue.
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