Petra Collins’s Photography and Artistic Style

Petra Collins is a Toronto-born artist whose photography explores contemporary femininity, identity, self-discovery, the female gaze, and other matters important to the millennial generation. She first gained recognition for her work on social media.

Early in Petra’s career, the filmmaker and photographer Richard Kern mentored her. She was also a frequent photo subject of photographer Ryan McGinley. Petra has since shot editorial for some of the most well-known fashion publications in the world, including Elle, i-D, and Vogue. Her collaborators in the fashion world include the creative director of Gucci, Alessandro Michele, and the founder of Rookie magazine, Tavi Gevinson.

The Canadian artist has photographed or directed ads for international brands Adidas, Calvin Klein, Nordstrom, Stella McCartney, and others. Among her directing credits are also several short films, as well as music videos for artists Cardi B, Selena Gomez, Carly Rae Jepsen, and Olivia Rodrigo. Petra’s work has appeared in exhibitions in New York, San Francisco, and Toronto, as well as at Miami’s Art Basel.

Petra Collins favors film photography over digital photography and prefers to use natural lighting or minimal lighting setups. Much of her work features a pastel color palette, a soft focus, and no retouching. Her images are often coming-of-age portraits that emphasize young women or teenage girlhood.

Petra Collins’s art explores contemporary femininity, identity, and self-discovery. Here are some brief highlights of her most notable works.

• The Ardorous (2010): Petra founded this website to showcase the work of young women artists. She invited photographers from all over the world to contribute images that would resonate with other women.
  
• Discharge (2015): In her first book, Petra details the experience and presentation of identity and femininity, exploring the private and public realities of growing up as a woman in the age of social media. This book closely followed Petra’s New York exhibition of the same name, which was her first solo exhibition.
• Babe (2015): For Petra’s second book, she spent time curating works by more than two dozen women artists, including Arvida Byström and Sandy Kim, in addition to showcasing some of her own photographs.
• Petra Collins: Coming of Age (2017): This monograph is a breathtaking, photo-driven memoir containing personal essays, family photos, and handwritten letters from young girls.
• OMG, I’m Being Killed (2019): This book is Petra’s unique take on fashion magazines, featuring photos that are simultaneously colorful, feminine, and confrontational.
• Miért vagy te, ha lehetsz én is? (2020): The book’s Hungarian title translates to “Why be you, when you can be me?” A collaboration with Los Angeles–based sculptor Sarah Sitkin, Petra’s first experiment with self-portraiture uses haunting molds of her body (and her sister’s) to surreally explore ownership, domesticity, sensuality, and identity.
• Fairy Tales (2021): Starring actor Alexa Demie, this feminist reinterpretation of nine fairy tales channels camp, magic, and sensuality.

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