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Overcoming my persistent sense of modesty

Testimony

Overcoming my persistent sense of modesty

I have always been intrigued by artistic nude and if sitting appealed to me, I didn’t dare to take the plunge though, to tell the truth, I never really had the opportunity… I used to think of it as a gift for your companion, a picture that would remain in the couple’s privacy. I became acquainted with “Who’s That Nude In Your Living Room?” by word of mouth and I discovered simple photos, beautiful and natural, which made the best of every model stand out whatever their age or stoutness, and with no exhibitionism nor vulgarity.
The idea of discovering myself through that angle appealed more and more to me but there remained nonetheless a certain sense of decency that prevented me from going any further… Exposing yourself in front of a photographer is one thing, being aware that your photo will be displayed and sold on the net is another thing…
I eventually made up my mind nearly one year after the beginning of the project, at a turning point in my life. I asked myself: “if I don’t do it now, then when?” I asked a friend to come with me so that I could feel more at ease; once I was naked on that large black background, there was no way I could draw back! We started with pictures of my back, so it was easier for me to relax and then little by little, I turned round. On the first snapshots, my face was all strained in spite of all Idan was saying to put me at ease. And then, gradually, I almost forgot that I was naked and I posed more and more unaffectedly. The selected shot is one of the very last we made when I had managed to be as natural as possible. I had no preconceived idea of the position I wanted to adopt nor of what I wanted to show. Therefore, the choice of the selected photo was based upon how we felt about each of them and especially upon the expression on the face.
I like the result very much as it actually reveals little of my intimacy and enhances what I like best in me.

F064 - Collection Perseverance by Idan Wizen

Using my body in an artistic way

Testimony

Using my body in an artistic way

Pose naked. I had this idea in mind for quite a while. Using my body in an artistic approach, being a communication tool, is for me an essential concept. Without our body, it is impossible for me to exist. We must be aware of it without detour. Having the experience of being the observer, I had to be in the place of this “naked” to understand and feel this relationship with the body. Today’s approaches in this area are not without complications. There are many preconceptions and anxieties to discover, but not insurmountable. I got to know Idan through a friend. The adventure fell under the direction, by contacting it I did not know very well towards which result I tended, but the step had to be taken!

 

His approach is committed and not borrowed from the codes of current society with regard to bodies for sale. Being anonymous was therefore the key in order to exploit the vision I had. Tool, the basic concept as far as I’m concerned. I was hoping for this experience as an exchange, a collaboration. The first minutes of conversation gave free rein to my imagination. Doubts also about my coming to his photo studio … How was the session going to take place? Was I going to flee at the “moment” of truth? But the photographer put my trust in me and knew how to communicate to me the vision of his work, respectable, sincere and natural. At first glance, we wonder especially if the gaze will go beyond our intimacy. Well no !

 

So I took off my clothes and borrowed the one that nature had given me, in a strictly professional setting. The camera is basically the one that creates the most anxiety. With Idan the idea of image disappears. He didn’t confront me with my body, and let me be who I was. He guided me through the poses. Not being there to prove anything to me, I trusted his experience. It amused me a lot and at the same time I took it very seriously without feeling like I was accountable for aesthetics. A mixture of very complex perception, being naked before a foreign gaze. Not so foreign, basically, because Idan quickly captures what we are there for, and adapts completely.

 

For my part, I enjoyed posing, realizing the limits of my body, like the surprises at the sight of certain pictures. The place given to exchange, to lightness, is what allowed me to approach this experience with confidence. To be natural, to be yourself. I do not recommend this experience as we recommend a bungee jump! Even if it’s quite comparable in fact … I see above all the fact that Idan is an artist and a person with whom we can live this. I invite you not to ask yourself too many questions, if the idea was born in your head it is that deep down the desire has already taken precedence over doubt. So respect yourself, go ask!

Once naked you fell like everything has failed you

Testimony

Once naked you fell like everything has failed you

My adventure started with a trivial conversation. I was chitchatting with a friend who already sat for Idan. He asked me:
– Would you fancy posing nude for a photographer?
– Well, you’re taking me a little off my guard! To be honest, I have never thought of it! But… yes… why not… I am not refusing… for good… well, it is worth looking into it!

A few days later Idan and I were emailing each other about that puzzling and incredible scheme of his which aroused a lot of positive curiosity… Shortly after, I came to a decision and arranged the time for a shooting! Once it is settled, lots of questions continuously arise… What the hell! You? Pose nude? Everyday I was about to cancel… And on it went, until the shooting day! At Beginning of July, 2009, more precisely the second. A scorching heat wave over Paris… My appointment was set on a Thursday evening after my working day in the province: stifling hot! I’ m sweating! My makeup is dripping. Traffic jams make my drive to Paris hellish. I am as tense as ever! Indeed you couldn’t feel cooler or more at ease after a sweet working day!… I managed to take a friend along with me to keep my spirits high. You may have a sturdy character, once you’re naked, you feel like everything has failed you. Once in the studio my head started spinning! Could I still draw back? Not really! Anyway I didn’t dare! Well, let’s go! In this adventure, I first aimed at overcoming myself, at being able to accept myself as I was. I wouldn’t back away now! Yet… Idan quickly puts us at ease as well as he wins our trust. You quickly make friends with him: thanks to his kindness and his clear and numerous explanations about his scheme. At the time, the site hadn’t been created yet. Then, he shows us some of the pictures he has already made and the first designs of the website. He very simply succeeds in trivializing that moment so dreadful for us amateur models! He also clearly answers our questions about the future use of those pictures; a contract is signed between the model and the photographer: only one picture is kept, all the other ones made during the sitting are destroyed. My mind at rest then, I feel peaceful enough to get to the second stage of that appointment. It is obviously more complicated. You end up in your birthday suit on the large black paper… Well, quite frankly, before you overcome your prejudice, you do feel ill at ease! You do feel uncomfortable! It took me ten minutes to relax… as Idan had told me! After those first most unpleasant minutes, you quickly play into the photographer’s hands. You come to forget the “serious” aspect of the situation. There’s a lot of laughter during the sitting. It’s not that easy to play the model when you have never posed nude! For my part, I made Idan’s work more complicated as I found out that I was hypersensitive to the flashlight of the studio! But he wasn’t disheartened by the problem; he changed straight away his operating mode of the light and kept helping me to have faith in me. The shooting doesn’t actually last long! So much stress for such a short time! When you leave you’re simply impatient and eager to discover “your” photo! I was astonished at the result after I had made the sitting so difficult for him: that photographer is a genius! I do not regret a single minute of the experience! Thank you Idan! It’s very simply incredible!

H045 - Collection Genèse by Idan Wizen

All his pictures are respectful…

Testimony

All his pictures are respectful...

A picture of me taken at the beach in a bathing suit had caused to hate my body to the point that I wouldn’t uncover it. Later, discovering the practice of nudity which naturism consists in, helped me to accept my body and not being afraid of showing it among naturists. But displaying it in a stranger’s living room, and worse, displaying it on the net where thousands of browsers could see it, that is something else! Yet the project Who’s that nude in your living romm appealed to me and I needn’t to think it twice. For me it was just achieving a process I initiated two years before.
Could my body be as attractive as to be displayed in a living room? Not my body as such, which is very different from the stereotypes imposed on us all day long. No. My body, with all its imperfections and scars, with all its defects that make it unique, would perhaps be able to be looked at delight, once captured by the photograph’s eye? According to he Naturists’ National Federation “Naturism is a way of life… which implies self-respect and respect for others…” Idan is not a naturist and yet all his portraits show respect for the body and the soul. That’s what I liked with him. The result is stunning… More than a hundred of “Nameless embodied souls” at liberty and happy to have unveiled themselves for their sake and ours. With a slight preference for H045?

Take the plunge and sit for Idan!

Testimony

Take the plunge and sit for Idan!

I was nervous… Please don’t imagine that it was at the idea of stripping in front of a stranger, even an artist; my sense of decency is purely moral, not the least physical. My only fear was not to be up to the photographer’s expectations, especially because I was aware that he was a professional who could not have the same look as the close relatives whom I had happened to sit for.
And the first minutes were minutes of agony: testing the light, fitting out the equipment, in a word, I was anxious like when you go to an interview for a job you’re very interested in… I reckon we’ve all experienced that. Then the sitting began and Idan’s kindness, his good mood and his sense of humor suddenly made it all very easy. I was only obsessed with following his instructions to the letter to get the best results. Big surprise: I didn’t see time pass, filled as I was with the desire to be up to the mark and above all very proud to have aroused a professional photographer’s interest, considering my age.
And I received the artist’s final work: I’m happy I have joined in. You who may still hesitate whereas deep in your heart you perhaps feel like doing the same, take the plunge and sit for Idan: you won’t regret it!

Why did I pose naked?

Testimony

Why did I pose naked?

– Because I was looking for a way to cure myself of my desires for a career in politics or to register for the Miss France competition

– Because I am stingy, and I could not resist the idea of inviting myself to your home without having to bring flowers or Yoplait baskets

– Because I didn’t want to dirty my things when Idan invited me to sit on the floor

– Because I wanted to make sure that I could still enter the frame despite my weight gain

– Because you always have to comply with a smooth skin check

– Because it is so common to show the last clothes that we bought when we should be proud to show the first costume that was offered to us (in addition I particularly want because they are my parents who gave it to me)

– Because your hospitality is legendary: “Make yourself at home” “Make yourself comfortable” …

– Because we will have to get used to the next tax reform

– Because I don’t have a swimsuit for Paris-Plage

– Because this is my evening dress

– Because it’s less sad than giving your body for science

H042 - Collection Genèse by Idan Wizen

You first notice the face before the nudity

Testimony

You first notice the face before the nudity

I discovered Idan’s work on Facebook while surfing on the net and went on his website right away. What first hit me was the look and the face of the models, not their nudity. Instantly I knew I wanted to be a part of this. I have no problem with nudity, but I was worried being a bad model. It was my first time, I wanted to be great. So, I kept going back to the website to get inspiration from the others’ poses. Idan knows how to keep the situation from being awkward. I was so focused on following his instructions that it felt like the session only lasted 10 minutes. I was afraid of not doing justice to Idan’s project, until I saw the pictures.
Since then, I’ve become a real fan and bought a dozen Wizens, my favorite being W064, who is by the way the highlight of my desk!

H046 - Collection Genèse by Idan Wizen

Thanks mom, I dedicate you this picture

Testimony

Thanks mom, I dedicate you this picture

I would like first to thank Idan for his patience during the shooting, he enabled me to forget that I was naked in front of his camera. It was a real challenge for me. Idan is a real professional and knows what to do to get people comfortable. I wanted to be a model 18 years ago, but here I am today, 18 years later posing at last! The picture won’t be touched up and I won’t be wearing any make up: it will be all natural. My challenge will be to confront myself. It took me several years and my mother’s death to finally decide that I had to accept myself.
I discovered Who’s that nude in your living room while surfing the net. It’s a great project that really spoke to what I needed at that time. It enabled me to be myself again.
Thanks Idan, Thanks Mom. I dedicate this picture to my mother hoping that wherever she is she can see me. I love you.

The excitement of surpassing myself

Testimony

The excitement of surpassing myself

A few months ago, I chanced upon the “Who’s that nude in your living room”’s website. After some email exchange, I had the information I wanted. I thought hard. I saw it as a challenge. Two months later, after I had seen how the project was developing, I made up my mind and took the plunge. Trust is the force that drives you to pose and let somebody invade your intimacy… and I did lack some! I was sure that I couldn’t do it. I felt stupid, stark naked in front of a stranger. But at the same time, I also felt like doing something very exciting! Not because I was sitting nude but because I was surpassing myself. In fact, it all went off very smoothly. The photographer helped me feel at ease without casting the least prying glance… I felt he was there to focus on a subject and that it was the only thing that interested him. You can feel it, you know! Even if I didn’t dare to sit facing him. At the end I was more relaxed. What made my decision easier in the first place was that the photographer was a man. I don’t think I would have taken the plunge if I had had to face a photographer of the opposite sex. I suppose it’s the reverse for other people.
To conclude I can’t but incite you to join in this project and trust the artist.

My doubts vanished with my mom’s blessing!

Testimony

My doubts vanished with my mom's blessing!

I heard about Idan’s project through a friend. My first reaction was to laugh… What is this crazy project? After a while, I decided to check it out on the Internet. I was surprised by my own reaction. What I thought at first was a joke was actually one of the most beautiful and artistic things I had ever seen. The more I looked at the pictures, the more the message of the project was obvious. Each picture is unique and tells a story of a person who decided to show themselves in the most natural and simple way. A surprising idea popped into my head: I wanted to be part of it.
Before making any decisions, though, I bought two pictures from Idan. The two pictures for me just had a little something that was different from the others! Well, it is precisely this little something that characterizes Idan’s work, and makes it particularly special.

I finally found the courage to pose for Idan. One night as Idan was asking again if I wanted to pose for him, I felt like doing something crazy: Throwing away all the inhibitions that prevented me from doing it before. But going to my photo shoot with Idan, I keep worrying, “Am I doing something stupid, will I regret it?”

Idan was very sweet and reassured me, “We won’t do any pose that you don’t want to do. Try to picture yourself on a beach.” That’s easy to say, but time flew by and before I realized it, the shoot was over. Looking at all the poses Idan took was one of the hardest experiences of my life, but the two photos I chose with Idan that made the final cut were fantastic! On the way home, I understood the real motivation that made me sit for Idan was that I simply wanted to.

When my picture was finally published, it took my breath away. It was the best picture ever taken of me. Telling my mom about the picture was one of my favorite moments, seeing her reaction when I first told her. At first she was freaked out that her daughter posed nude. But she asked to see the picture. It was a real shock to hear her say that she loved it and found it beautiful. The small doubts I had vanished as my mom gave me her blessing.
Posing nude for Idan is probably one of the best decisions I ever made, this is why I am not hiding it.

One day, I received a text from Idan telling me that someone bought my picture… I felt proud and flattered to have been chosen and to have moved someone. I don’t really think about on who’s wall my picture is hanging. I feel like that person in the picture was another part of myself, a sort of abstraction that if I came closer, would whisper all those hidden things to me.