Leaving Your Mark

Featuring Isobel Rae Words by Nastasia Khmelnitski

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In the last days of April, I had a Zoom call with Isobel Rae, in which I learned more about her work and got to discuss her path in photography and her main passion. It turned out to be a deep conversation that allowed us to uncover the influences of art on her work, the importance of family history, and the connection Isobel creates with the people she works with. The idea of history being cyclical emerges as a central concept during our dialogue with numerous comparisons and highlights from her grandparents’ lives.

Isobel’s grandfather was a photographer and was running a photo studio, and her grandmother had a magazine and a TV show. Isobel explains how going through the family’s belongings affected her self-awareness, “I learned to be appreciative and intentional with the things we choose to surround ourselves with and realized how important it is to leave your mark, write things down and communicate.”

Isobel Rae is a Canadian photographer from Calgary currently located in New York. She graduated with a BA in photography from Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver. Since then, Isobel has presented exhibitions in Canada and the US and was a finalist in Documentary Family Awards (2022). After graduation, Isobel launched As.iZ, an online magazine and a hub for creators to connect and showcase their work. In this interview, we speak with Isobel about themes she’s most interested in researching, such as portraiture, photography of siblings and twins, and her family history. From thinking about themes, we continue to discuss the technique that enables Isobel to merge the personal connection with her subjects and the state of mind of an observer on set. We speak about her recent work Grandmas House, the idea to relaunch her magazine As.iZ, and the upcoming projects.

‘I think what influenced me the most was art history, iconography, and symbolism in painting. I took those themes and transferred them into my photographic work. It also opened my mind — to experiment with different techniques and play with multimedia collages while not having such a strict, narrow vision of what photography should be.’

Photography vs. Painting

Nastasia: I think it's critical to understand an artist's background to be able to speak about what they’re doing today. When I started to research your work, two things caught my attention: your family history, which seems important because you go back to it in your work, and your initial choice — being a painter before turning to photography. Probably, switching a medium allows you to present things differently than with painting. In what way do you think your experience in painting influences your choices of themes in photography? 

Isobel: Originally I went to school for painting, and within the first three weeks, I accidentally signed up for a photo course and I loved it. I immediately changed my major, but I continued painting and taking painting courses. I think what influenced me the most was art history, iconography, and symbolism in painting. I took those themes and transferred them into my photographic work. It also opened my mind — to experiment with different techniques and play with multimedia collages while not having such a strict, narrow vision of what photography should be. 

In terms of my family history, it was a very interesting journey for me. My grandma died when I was two years old, so I never got to know her. In the project Grandmas House, I created this connection with her. My grandpa died in 2011; he was also a photographer, but I never really knew that he had a photo studio in his early years. I didn't discover it until he passed, so it was almost like a subconscious influence. As you get older, you reflect on things differently. Going over all their objects and possessions, and learning about them in a way that felt like they were connecting with me through what they left behind, was a big influence.

Nastasia: Yeah, I see this connection in your images. Speaking about your love to work in a darkroom and painting, in both, it's about using your hands to create, doing all the steps from A to Z, starting from scratch until you reach that final result. You're speaking about symbolism from your experience with paintings and then finding these connections with your relatives to learn who they were and who you are, trying to analyze yourself. I find it very beautiful. I wanted to ask you whether you go back to see what your grandfather's work was, trying to analyze if you have anything in common, such as a mutual technique or a theme that you are recreating?

Isobel: I think it's interesting that you point out the darkroom because it was after I began Grandmas House project that I started to go back to the darkroom. I did it when I was first in school, and then I didn’t have access to it. I’m from Calgary, Canada, and there was no darkroom. So it was just after I moved to New York when I started going to the darkroom again. When I started this project, I was going through my grandpa's house. He had darkroom equipment, and I thought it would be great to use his tools in my work, so it could go from his generation to mine. I ended up using a lot of paper that was left behind from the 70s. It was very interesting and experimental. The paper is different, which I really like. I set up a little darkroom in my kitchen. It was just a cool process to try and connect with him and understand his perspective. 

I also was going through a lot of his images. He owned a photo studio. He had hundreds, probably thousands, of negatives. He had that collection of negatives from when he purchased the studio that people left there. Regarding his images, he shot a lot of slide film. It's in the colors where I feel this connection between us. His colors were deep and bright, and he liked to photograph his family (he had eight children). It is a parallel because I'm also interested in the family theme. In terms of Grandmas House, I'm also doing a project on siblings. I would say there is a lot of influence there. It's more subconscious. I think we have a lot in common.

‘I would consider myself an observer. I prefer to see people just as they are and not put too much onto them. And in terms of the siblings, it's interesting to come in as an outside person. They obviously have their own relationship already, so I'm just an observer.’

The Technique

Nastasia: I feel this is like a time machine when you can go back. I didn't know your grandfather used to photograph families, and I wanted to speak with you about your project with twins and siblings. In this project, you photograph your subjects in pairs and return to meet them again after a year to see what changed emotionally, physically, and maybe even in their personalities. If we speak about your work with people and the technique of photographing two people together, close people, how do you create the narrative and this connection between them and yourself? When you need to become closer to the subjects, on a personal level, so they feel good together and stay real before the camera. How do you work in this sense? What is your technique?

Isobel: I would consider myself an observer. I prefer to see people just as they are and not put too much onto them. And in terms of the siblings, it's interesting to come in as an outside person. They obviously have their own relationship already, so I'm just an observer. I went to the Twins Day Festival in August last year, and there were so many different groups of people at a time — all these different personalities. What is interesting is this kind of dichotomy of the sibling relationship. I think that's what first attracted me to this theme. 

My dad's side of the family... they're estranged. I was interested in how people are so different coming from the same family. You're raised in the same way, but you are completely different individuals. Through my work, I'm trying to show the similarities as well as the fact that there are two very distinct people. I try to observe and make people comfortable by talking and learning more about them. I usually tell them a little bit about myself. I'm a quiet and bubbly person, so I can make people comfortable quite easily. That's something that works in my favor.

Siblings

Nastasia: What caught my attention is that although we know some subjects in your images are twins, it feels like they are different people (even physically). There's something in the energies and in the way they hold themselves. Perhaps it's connected to the way you stage them. In what way do you think people change when you meet them in a year? 

Isobel: So far, I've been able to come back to two pairs of siblings. I originally started shooting with them two years ago — it was interesting to see their growth. The first two girls, Maddie and Diarra, were young when I met them, I think 18-19. They were just starting modeling and were innocent and a bit unsure of themselves. I shot them again a year later, and they just blossomed. Their relationship's so close in terms of the sibling relationship. They're going to be tight all the way. The same thing with the other girls, Stephany and Katherine: they’re in completely different places in their lives. The younger sister, Katherine, was still in high school when we shot the first time. She’s now graduated, and she's off to college. She was back for the weekend when we did our second shoot. And the older sister, Stephany, is starting a new career and having so much personal growth. It's very cool to see that and develop this relationship. I can't wait to do it again and again and see the differences in all the years.

‘I learned that I'm quite spiritual. I like to go deep into thought. I got that from my grandma. I realized that all those objects and artifacts hold energy. I learned to be appreciative and intentional with the things we choose to surround ourselves with and realized how important it is to leave your mark, write things down and communicate.’

Grandmas House

Nastasia: I would love to see the rest of the project when it's ready. Let us know when this happens, perhaps we can discuss the project and analyze it together. Regarding Grandmas House, I think it’s also a very emotional project. Discovering that your grandmother had a TV show and a magazine is astonishing. In this connection, what have you learned about yourself while working on this series (experiencing new things and learning about your grandmother)?

Isobel: It's honestly been amazing. I started my magazine before I realized that my grandma also had a magazine. It feels like everything is connected. For this project, I had to go deep into the things she left behind. My grandpa didn't get rid of anything. They had so many things. Some would consider him a hoarder, but he wasn't a hoarder, more of a collector - same with my grandma. Finding all of her writings was amazing for me. She was a mystic, and that was what her TV show was about. It was called Outer Fringe and was on a local cable channel. She had different guests and interviewed them. She was into the supernatural and astrology. When I'm reading her writings, it feels like she's speaking directly to me. I just loved this one piece she wrote to her children when she was battling cancer. She was so sure of herself and her purpose and her children's purpose. It feels like she had everything planned out, and she was in on what the universe had in store for everyone. 

For as long as I’ve been alive, my dad lived with my grandpa, so I spent a lot of time at the house when I was younger. When my grandpa died, it was assumed my dad would continue to live there and that his collections and memories would be dealt with love, care, and preservation. Unfortunately, some of my father's siblings had different ideas, and thus a battle for the house began almost immediately after my grandpa's death. It's been going on for 11 years or so now. Eventually, it became a reality that my father might be forcefully ousted from his home, along with all of my grandfather's and grandmother's things to be discarded and sold. At that point, I decided I needed to document their things, the house, and my personal journey of connecting with them posthumously. I found this piece of writing from my grandmother. In the story, she’s crying because she feels her kids are ashamed of the house, and they don't want the house. I felt there were so many connections that were happening.

Nastasia: What did you learn about yourself from discovering all these things about your grandmother?

Isobel: I think I learned that I'm quite spiritual. I like to go deep into thought. I got that from my grandma. I realized that all those objects and artifacts hold energy. I learned to be appreciative and intentional with the things we choose to surround ourselves with and realized how important it is to leave your mark, write things down and communicate.

As.iZ

Nastasia: This is an important understanding. Perhaps this can become a new theme for your next project — the spirituality in things. I'm also cautious of time, so if we could briefly speak about you being a founder of As.iZ. Why is it important for you and what this project is about? 

Isobel: I started that right after I graduated from university. There were so many talented people around me who weren't getting the exposure that I thought they deserved. I wanted to start my platform and create space for people just to create without any boundaries or rules. So I started the first issue and sourced people myself. I reached out to people I knew, and it went pretty well. I saw that people like it, so for the second issue, I got over 100 submissions. It wasn't a figure I was expecting. Then it just grew, and it became a network of people who connected through this publication. It was also a fun way to express myself and play with graphic design and layout. I realized that is something that I enjoy doing. Giving people their spotlight is rewarding to me. We've been on a little hiatus since 2018, but I'm working on starting up again in a new way. I'm not sure which way I want to do it, I'm still figuring that out, but it's in the works, so I'm excited to restart it.

‘I have a lot of vivid imagery from my childhood, and I'd like to re-create those scenes in a tableau photography type of way. I was putting together and writing down the scene that I remember and the details. I'm figuring out how to communicate that visually.’

A Sneak Peek

Nastasia: Good luck with the relaunch! I usually speak with artists and creators about finding their network, and you're building the network for others. One last thing, what are your next steps, your next project, or a current project you're working on? 

Isobel: I have a few things that I've been working on and trying to produce. I'm going to Italy and Paris soon. Last summer, I started a lovers' series. I am interested in young love. So I think while I'm traveling, I will work on this project a little more and build that up. That's one that I'm excited about!

I have another project that I want to work on. I have a lot of vivid imagery from my childhood, and I'd like to re-create those scenes in a tableau photography type of way. I was putting together and writing down the scene that I remember and the details. I'm figuring out how to communicate that visually. I've been working on that for a long time, doing background work, but I haven't shot anything yet. So that one is concept heavy. 

At the beginning of my practice, I was very focused on historical references, and I've been using that a lot in my photography. I think I'm going to go back to that and play around with (not necessarily iconic paintings) rather historical paintings that I've been finding at the library and recreating those as a tableau as well. 

Nastasia: It all sounds amazing! The young lovers' project is very interesting because you'll be working in different cultures such as Paris, Italy, and then you also have The States and perhaps Canada. Just viewing it from different angles is fascinating. Going back and analyzing your childhood, flashbacks, and memories — I would wait to see how it turns out. 

Isobel: Thank You!

Nastasia: Thank you so much for your time and this fascinating conversation Isobel.