Sarah J. Edwards (Photographer) and Sally A. Edwards (Art Director)
"We believe making striking images are born out of bringing critical ingredients to each session; humour, storytelling, respect, down-to-earth scene setting and specifically created soundtracks.
"Our ethos is that each shoot portrays subjects naturally. We take an organic approach, with zero to little in the way of retouching and essential lighting only." ~ Sarah J. Edwards
'Ello Addictees!
Welcome to this week's art fix. We are excited to introduce British twin sisters, Sarah J. Edwards (Photographer) and Sally A. Edwards (Art Director).
When we were approached by the duo asking to collaborate, we couldn't say no. We are thrilled to have the sisters on board and can't wait to share their photography with you.
Sally and Sarah were raised in rural England and Scotland. To inform themselves culturally, they spent much of their childhood and art school years secretly relying on a crackling radio, untuned T.V.s, passed around mixtapes and discovered international magazines.
Enter BLAG. Sally and Sarah created BLAG - initially as a xeroxed 'zine, at art college, using the wages they made from their Saturday job. The sisters grew it to become an international glossy, choosing up-and-comers for covers and features ahead of the curve. They produced in-depth, down-to-earth editorial content leaning into humour and kindness, unveiling an empathetical viewpoint not often seen. Over the years, the duo have produced and created hundreds of original shoots and interviews.
Sarah and Sally believe making striking images are born out of bringing critical ingredients to each session; humour, storytelling, respect, down-to-earth scene setting and specifically created soundtracks. Sarah uses singular spotlights usually reserved for film sets or natural light and focuses on creating the right atmosphere.
The twins' portraits feature some of the world's most admired artists from Beastie Boys, OutKast, Franz Ferdinand, N.E.R.D., Joshua Homme, Broken Bells, Slash, Justice, Amy Winehouse and many more. Presented on www.blag.london, a series of portraits features intimate images of inspirational musicians, actors, directors and models, including Helen McCrory, Rinko Kikuchi, Kelly Rowland, Amerie, Ciara, Nelly Furtado, Anne-Marie Duff, Bella Dayne, Gillian Anderson, Sofia Boutella and more.
We're delighted to present a selection of our favourite images. Say cheese 📸
Amy Winehouse, While It's Calm
Behind The Scenes: “Amy’s Back To Black album was on the cusp of release. I’ve been friends with her publicist for years, and thankfully the timing was right for our Vol. 2 No 7 edition of BLAG. Amy was kind enough to pop by the studio as we were shooting James McAvoy for a cover the same day.
“She had performed on Joolz Holland’s show the night before the shoot. Our good mutual friend Yasiin Bey had taken Sally and I across town in a cab one night to see her perform. He was excited to introduce us after the show. I’ll always remember her huge smile and “’Ello gals!” intro.
“From then, we always had a friendly rapport whenever we saw each other.
“Back to the shoot: I started taking Polaroids and going about things as usual, having a chat. As I pulled the Polaroids back, Amy was delighted. She said it was the first time she liked seeing herself smile in a photo.
“The photos we got have a beautiful, classic look as she was just relaxed and happy and had a few moments of peace.
“She invited me to a nail bar at Selfridges afterwards for the interview. She took my number and said, “we can go to parties and drink champagne.” She also wanted to set up a club with all women DJs and was adamant Sally and I would be a part of it.” ~ Sarah J. Edwards
Slash, Really Slash
Behind The Scenes: "We were delighted when Slash's publicist asked if we'd like to feature him.
"The interview and shoot took place in Soho, London. I was nervous because I was doing both.
"In the background, Sally captured video, and his team filled the rest of the room.
"The interview went great, and I did my best to pull his leg as respectfully as possible since Slash seemed so blasé. In the end, he said, 'That was actually pretty painless. I was scared at first.'
"I worked with the existing hotel lamps and used some reflection for the photos. We wanted relaxed, un-fussy photos, as many are either backstage documentary or super polished.
"Later, his publicist told us it was one of his favourite ever interviews and shoots!" - Sarah J. Edwards
André 3000, Greetings
Behind The Scenes: "We had worked with André a couple of times before when I was an editor for NME.com. We'd always got along well but didn't really know each other.
"When we heard OutKast had a new album, we had to get André for a BLAG cover.
"The shoot took 10 minutes. I was using 35mm film and a flash. The room had a low ceiling, so we had to shoot swiftly and compactly. The images came out strong and fun." ~ Sarah J. Edwards
John Legend, Velvet Crush
Behind The Scenes: "We took this shot in 2006 on the hottest day on record.
"John and his team kindly traveled to meet us near Bond Street in a gorgeous members club, which is sadly no more. The room had a mural, and I loved the idea of using that to create something classic.
"John was chilled out enough to wear a suit.
"That day, I learnt, never give a singer iced water - room temperature only!" ~ Sarah J. Edwards
Rinko Kikuchi, Shine Bright
Behind The Scenes: "Rinko was lovely. Sally, Polly Banks, our stylist and one assistant arrived and worked with Rinko via a translator.
"Sally interviewed Rinko for her BLAG feature. She was open to Polly's styling, which had a brilliant retro twist. The outfit she wore looked simple but was actually a — challenging to get into and out of, catsuit, entirely covered in sequins, making it very heavy. Rinko made it look easy, and I love the juxtaposition of Kit Kemp's interior design in the background at the Soho Hotel." - Sarah J. Edwards
If you'd like to see a show biz icon on your wall, get in touch with us at blair@addictedgallery.com or elena@addictedgallery.com
Until the next one Addictees, a picture is worth a thousand words so make sure there's no spinach in your teeth when you take a selfie 😬
Blair & El 💖