Each shot balances the lighting, the smoke machine and the stage’s figures: Twigs and her many dancers. And the reason it feels so deliberate, so premeditated, is all in the storytelling. Each element of Twigs’ live performance are treated as characters within their own right. In one image, the lighting obscures the performers facial features, leaving them swimming into silhouette. Deepak describes the impact of the absence of colour: “In monochrome, the focus shifts to her presence, her expression, the contrasts of shadow and movement. It amplifies the timeless quality of the performance.” In another, her dress is the subject, it’s drapes and edges highlighted by the light that shines behind.
In terms of inspiration, Deepak is drawn to the films of Wong Kar Wai for their vibrance, director Andrei Tarkovsky for the poetry of his films and the photographer Peter Lindbergh for his observational quality. Sonically speaking, Deepak shares, “I’m inspired by the same artists I often shoot: FKA Twigs, James Blake, and Björk. Musicians whose work blend intimacy with experimentation.” Perhaps this level of off-the-cuff depth found in Deepak’s photography is a testament to his grasp of how to conjure chemistry between photographer and sitter. Without Deepak’s observation and fluidity, and without FKA Twigs’ stage presence, attention, this symbiosis would not have occurred. Deepak ends: “I aimed to capture not just what it looked like, but what it felt like in that moment, the atmosphere, the intimacy, the power.”