Ajak Deng by Egor Tsodov for Numéro Russia September 2017
Photographer: Egor Tsodov. Model(s): Ajak Deng. Source: Numéro Russia. Stylist: Casting Director: Seona Taylor-Bell, Mar Peidro. Makeup: Maddie North.
Posted Sep 03, 2017
Ajak Deng goes to the desert in search of something greater by Egor Tsodov for Numéro Russia, September 2017. This is a story about the beauty of raw humanity. Allowing her body to become one with her environment, Ajak brings the focus beyond just herself. Standing strong amongst a sea of strange, all things change as they stay the same. Exploring a fluid atmosphere exposes a more non-linear format. Dressed to the nines, she stands with a stick in hand, waiting at the tip of the baron desert wasteland. Her eyes roll back in her head, as if making contact with the earth’s center. Inside this abstract oasis we become one with the absence of none. Setting forth in a search for something new, art stirs the senses and awakens the spirits. Standing in the midst of an earthly surround this fearsome female seeks to find higher ground. To be gifted by grandness of sand below the feet… to do is to be is to find yourself free. The past and future collide, in this expression of soul retrieval.
Energy passes through her skin ~ emanating out as it rushes right in. This evokes a sense of spirit to the page. Creating a call to unity, this message portends a momentous a sign is in the aire. Gravity has no power as we watch Deng bend the physical rules. Appearing like she’s dangling from the sky with a boot strap linked to a cloud floating by. In the mystical meanderings of something so unique, we are compelled to editorialize. Her body lays calmly rejecting the laws of physical nature as she simply floats. A line of windmills stand erect a sign of a new beginning or an apocalyptic ending. An inviting image that possesses the will to wonder and the passion to fly. She leans back and is lifted up, letting the weight of her body lay on the air. Standing in the shadows of this windswept garden, her hands are over-head as if she’s holding something up. Floating just above her extended limbs, there sits a giant, black, oblong bubble. Disruptive yet calming, nothing appears attached yet everything is connected. Bonding comes between them as if this abstract shape belongs to the gorgeous, blue sky.
Mar Peidro mixes the music of fashion with the soul of style. This isn’t your normal design editorial, rather, it’s a journey into the land of the unknown. Where looks are about a fusion of feelings. Gone are the days of feminine & masculine, we have ventured into a world beyond gender. Somber shades mutate from black and green as the color erupts to a bright, yellow dream. Like sunshine on a stick, so is the shawl that falls over her front. Most of the images are done during the day, albeit a back-bending delight where she’s wearing a big bubble-coat. Falling into a back-bend, the setting sun reflects off her glorious skin. The atmospheric energy rises high as the rich fabric catches the billowing winds. This is not a story of cover up rather it’s a tale of exposure. Deng’s features sing out in visual poetry, as her skin comes in contact with the beauty of her bones. Truth is reflected in every image ~ shown whether touched or left alone.
Mastering the look of naked makeup, Maddie North uses this platform as a celebration of the face. Her stunning eyes erupt is white with a line that rides the upper lids. The look is so spectacular, you’ll find yourself mesmerized by this optical surprise. A hint of powder ignites a gorgeous glow, allowing the natural elements of facial structure to stand out. The sun hits her skin with abounding energy, touched in contrast by the intensity of her stare. Beauty bends as art extends to the outer reaches of the mind. That means in our ever seeking system of change we hold our heart first. To do is to be – aching to find ourselves free. To be at the center of the universe, but still aching to be in touch with something greater… that is humanity at it’s finest.
