What inspired me in january?
The first month of the year always feels like a slow awakening. The days are short, the weather is far from my favorite, and everything seems shrouded in a muted haze. But in those quiet moments, there's space to consume, to absorb, and to let inspiration settle in. This month, I found it in unexpected places - through the lens of a war photographer, in the immersive glow of light installations, in AI-generated art exhibited in one of the world's most prestigious galleries.
Movies
One of the most impressive movies I saw this month was Lee (2023), a biographical film about Lee Miller. Her life was anything but ordinary - she went from being a Vogue model to a fearless war photographer, capturing some of the most haunting images of World War II. The movie does justice to her complexity, portraying her not just as an observer of history, but as someone who shaped the way we remember it.
Kate Winslet takes on the role of Lee Miller and delivers one of her most nuanced performances to date. She embodies Miller's transformation from high fashion model to hardened war correspondent with incredible depth, capturing both her charisma and her inner turmoil. It's a role that requires both emotional heft and physical strength, and Winslet pulls it off brilliantly.
If you're not familiar with Lee Miller's photography, I highly recommend checking her out. Her work is a raw and unfiltered record of history, but be warned-some of her most powerful images are deeply graphic and disturbing.
Art & Installations
This month I found myself drawn to the work of Anthony McCall, a British-born, New York-based artist known for his "solid-light" installations. His work is incredibly sculptural, yet made entirely of light - a fascinating contradiction. Light is ephemeral, intangible, constantly shifting, yet McCall manages to give it a physical presence that makes it feel almost solid.
Anthony McCall
Nick Verstand
This exploration of form and presence resonates with my own work. In my photography, I'm always looking for ways to bring out the sculptural qualities of light and shadow, to create images that feel almost three-dimensional. Lately, I've been thinking more about extending that into physical sculpture-exploring how light interacts with material in a tangible way. That's why McCall's work feels so relevant to me right now; it's at the intersection of the ephemeral and the physical, something I'm always drawn to.
A similar interplay between light, space, and experience can be found in the work of Nick Verstand, a Dutch artist whose installations often appear at music festivals and art spaces. His work uses light as a responsive, almost living element that interacts with sound and movement in real time. Having spent a lot of time at techno events, I've always been fascinated by the way light can completely transform a space, turning sound into something visible and atmosphere into something almost tactile. Verstand's approach takes this concept further, using technology to create immersive environments that feel alive.
Bookshop
© Cédrine Scheidig
Three weeks ago, I was in Paris for a shoot with Boycott Magazine and took the opportunity to visit 7L, Karl Lagerfeld's legendary bookshop. Of course, I didn't leave empty-handed - I walked out with a towering pile of books, because collecting books remains one of my greatest passions.
More than just a bookstore, 7L is a haven for those obsessed with photography, fashion, and design. Founded by Lagerfeld, the space is a reflection of his insatiable curiosity. But the real treasure is hidden behind the shop, a vast private library that once served as his personal research space.
It's the kind of place that feels cinematic-high ceilings, endless shelves, the soft hum of pages turning. If you're ever in Paris, it's worth stepping inside, if only to experience the aura of creative obsession that hangs in the air.
Technology: Midjourney
I recently have been enjoying Midjourney a lot more since the new web interface experience is so much smoother. The web interface has become smoother, more intuitive, making the creative process feel less like prompting an AI and more like collaborating with a strange, otherworldly artist.
One of the projects I’ve been developing with AI is Echo from Beyond. It’s not just an experiment, it’s a way to reimagine my own photographic archive. By feeding my past work into AI, I create entirely new pieces that exist in a space between memory and invention. My inspiration comes from everywhere, daily life, my dreams, the content I consume, and even my psychedelic experiences.
That’s what fascinates me about this process, it sits at the intersection of the ephemeral and the physical, something I’m continuously drawn to. AI allows me to weave all of these fragments together into something visually new, yet deeply personal. It expands the possibilities of creation in ways I couldn’t have imagined before.
AI Art
One of the biggest shifts in the art world is happening right now, AI-generated art is being accepted by major galleries. This month, Bennett Miller, an Oscar-nominated director, is showcasing AI-generated prints at Gagosian Paris.
Miller started working with AI while researching a documentary about how technology is reshaping human experience. In 2022, OpenAI invited him to beta-test an early version of DALL·E, and he quickly realized its potential as a new artistic medium. The works he’s exhibiting at Gagosian feel like photographs pulled from a forgotten past, yet they’ve never existed. They challenge the very idea of what photography is.
It’s a significant moment, Gagosian, one of the most influential galleries in the world, is not just acknowledging AI art but embracing it. What does this mean for the future of creativity? If AI can now be exhibited alongside traditional photography, sculpture, and painting, where do we draw the line between human and machine-made art? Or maybe that line no longer matters.
