“Experimenting with colour & light” – Lee Kirby

Lee Kirby is a freelance photographer from London who is especially well-known for his portrait work, but he also experiments with light, color, and projection. One of his most striking projects is called Pro-ject, where he projects images onto his human subjects and captures the interplay between the projected light and the contours of the body.

Kirby’s approach is part fashion, part art, and very much about experimentation. He often uses long exposures when projecting to make the light blend naturally with the body. “German artist Gerhard Richter has played a massive part in the inspiration behind Pro-ject. His way of working has always interested me, creating a painting that resembles a photograph. Richter focuses on photographic techniques when painting, even down to how photographic paper has a sheen to it, which he uses in his work”(Kirby).

What’s really interesting to me is how Kirby’s work present what identity looks like when layered with colored lights and visuals – how the outer self and the inner self integrate to create a new look.

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