Concept / Ballet Editorial/ Art Direction
-Dec 2024
Chiaroscuro
This proposal offers an emotionally charged visual reimagining of Swan Lake, seen through a dark, symbolic and contemporary lens. Rather than presenting the ballet in its traditional romantic frame, the concept strips the story to its psychological core — desire, duality, and destiny.
The visual language draws inspiration from the chiaroscuro elegance of Irving Penn’s photography and the dramatic sophistication of Vogue fashion editorials. It is sculpted through shadows and light, with sharp contrasts and rich textures of feather, water, and stone. The swans are not simply graceful creatures, but symbols of transformation and entrapment. The crossbow becomes a silent witness of fate. The prince, the sorcerer, Odette and Odile emerge from darkness with a mythic presence, suspended in a world between beauty and brutality.
This is not a literal interpretation, but a reinterpretation that invites the viewer to feel, rather than just admire. A ballet seen not from the stage, but from the inner world of its characters — where light is rare, and every gesture has weight.
These images were created using AI tools to visually articulate my concepts with clarity and precision, staying true to my creative vision.