Eugenio Recuenco Part 1...

This post is long overdue...my apologies! My husband unexpectedly got some time off from work, so we've been taking advantage of the quality time and enjoying some of the nice weather we've finally been experiencing up here in Northern Canada. But I've been planning this post for some time and I'm so excited to finally get to it!

I owe a debt of gratitude to the divine Silent Storyteller blog for answering a mystery for me. I have been in love with a series of fairytale inspired images for some time, but had no idea who the photographer was. Then one day I stopped into Silent Storyteller and discovered the answer...the brilliant Eugenio Recuenco.

I'm sure a lot of you have seen the previous two images before, but you might not be as familiar with the rest of Recuenco's immense and eclectic body of work. I immediately nipped over to his website where I was thrilled to find a veritable treasure trove of darkly gorgeous images. I was, of course, happy to discover quite a few fairytale images that I hadn't run across before. I love this Beauty and the Beast one (my all time favorite Disney film!)

And I'm just in love with this modern take on the sleeping maiden motif which leaves the question of which fairytale this might be open ended to the viewer's imagination. It most reminds me of Sleeping Beauty, but it also has echoes of Snow White and other less known traditional fables.

But Recuenco's repertoire goes beyond lush fairytale imagery. I love the theatrical set piece feel to this whimsical image (not to mention the great outfit!)

And this period style shot could be equally at home in a classic film as a editorial fashion spread.

But what most struck me about Recuenco's work as I spent the next few hours scrolling through each image (and saving a near innumerable number of them to my desktop) was the incredible sense of narrative he creates. Almost every shot suggests that we have been given a quick glimpse into a story that we don't completely understand, but that nevertheless imparts a weight of emotional tension and a complete world all of it's own.

Each of these images suggests so many fascinating possibilities to me...I think I could find the germ of a novel in each of them.

Recuenco's work is very often dark and disturbing to downright nightmarish, but whatever the subject, it is always fascinating and compelling. I particularly like this next series of images which suggest to me the strange gothic novels of British literature.

This series is so enigmatic and dark but beautiful and haunting at the same time.

And it goes without saying that the clothes are to die for!

Stay tuned for the second half of this post where I'll share some more beauties with you and gush a lot more about Recuenco, but for now I'll leave you with this whimsical image that just makes me smile!