Passion

There are few things better than embarking on a project for which you are truly passionate and seeing that project through from start to completion. We are extremely proud of the work that Epilogue did in producing several gold leaf and resin pieces (we titled the collection Gold in the Shadow) this past fall. The process was as fulfilling as the final product.

The concept involved a modeling shoot with a gothic theme. While we initially feared the theme may have been overplayed, having access to the incomparable Marigny Opera House in New Orleans as the setting provided us with a creative advantage and allowed us to capture something unique.

Leticia Jimenez climbing the narrow stairs of the Marigny Opera House in New Orleans

We titled the collection Gold in the Shadow as a play on Jung’s interpretation of the shadow as the unconscious, which, according to this philosophy, is often instinctive and irrational. As gold leaf was the primary artistic medium, “Gold In the Shadow” quickly became the chosen name.

Chris Deville capturing Leticia Jimenez at the Marigny Opera House in New Orleans

Do something you’ve never done before, as they say. That was never so true as with this project, as we had to oversee all aspects of the project ranging from costume design to sourcing props, booking models, location scouting, gold leafing canvases, constructing props, and resining the completed pieces, along with illustration, framing, providing art direction, and general photography.

We set reasonable goals: the desire to create something dark, affecting, and thematic.

Gold leaf and resined pieces are hallmarks of western religious art. Our project began with the idea of using these mediums to depict the sacrilegious, thus mixing the sacred and the profane to the desired effect.

Like a Prayer, 24" x 36" gold leaf and resin photo illustration.

Process

As most artists realized at some point in their careers, the journey is often more important than the actual destination. We set reasonable goals: the desire to create something dark, affecting, and thematic. Starting out with only the most general of ideas and direction, we exceeded our own expectations.

We knew we wanted to work with gold leaf and resin. We knew we wanted to depict a mixture of the sacred and the profane. We had no idea what direction we would take beyond these initial ideas.