Meet George Griefy and Alexander Varelidis, two young photographers from Greece whose love for fine nude art and the occult has led them to join forces and create a series of emotive portraits that echo of fear, serenity, loss and despair. Chasseur caught up with the creative duo in an attempt to understand the chemistry behind this succesful collaboration.
What first got you involved with the medium of photography?
Griefy: I started manipulating photos from around the web, trying to give them a darker feeling and then I thought, ‘’Why not manipulate my own photos?’’ So, it all went down from there. However, I focus more on capturing a photo rather than editing it.
Alexander: I was always looking for a way to express my inner thoughts in an artistic way. I remember I was in high school when I had my first photography lesson which helped me realize photography was my thing!
Aesthetically speaking, both your works share many similarities. Was that always the case or did you influence each other into one common style?
Griefy: When I first met Alexander, I discovered we carry the same views and that we see the world and art through the same eyes. Due to these things and the fact that we’ve been shooting together for the last year I think it is quite reasonable to find many similarities in our works.
Alexander: Well, we started taking photos about the same time and we used to do it together, sharing our experiences and exchanging ideas. So, I think that was always the case. We created a common style together.
You seem to have grown a certain love for the naked body form. Where does this attraction stem from?
Griefy & Alexander: The human body is art itself. It’s impressive how many things you can do with just a camera and a naked body and how easily you can demonstrate purity, innocence, freedom and beauty. This attraction comes from the Renaissance era, where Fine Nude Art came to the forefront representing a timeless ideal of humanity. Both Baroque and Renaissance Art have always been great sources of inspiration for us.
Darkness, fear, despair and melancholy are all common concepts in your work. What inspires them?
Griefy: I used to pay attention more to the dark side of life when I was younger –not necessarily in a depressing way. I think that music had and still has a major contributing part to this. I don’t know why, but at times of misery, creativity just seems to grow inside me. Maybe art is a way to go through some things.
Alexander: My inspiration comes from my feelings, especially the ones I’ve experienced in an intense way in my life. Melancholy and despair are some of them and I wouldn’t consider it bad as these have shaped our identities as artists.
Despite being very young, your work has already received certain press. Considering the non-commercial nature of your work, is exposure of any importance to you?
Griefy: Well, the truth is that every time you see a work of yours gaining popularity you feel satisfied and willing to do more in order to challenge yourself. Exposing part of your craft also works as an influence for other artists.
Alexander: My primary purpose is to use photography as a way to express myself. However, I think that you need to expose part of your work to accomplish personal needs, such as satisfaction and acceptance.
Have you considered experimenting with any other mediums such as film and video?
Griefy & Alexander: We have already worked on some video projects and we are keen on doing some more in the future. Actually there is a chance we might be directing a new music video for post-rock band ‘Blueneck’ sometime soon.
What should we expect next?
Griefy & Alexander: Next thing is an exhibition we’re going to hold in Ptolemaida with other artists from Greece where Yannis Smaragdis, the director of ‘El Greco’ is invited. And of course more photographic works and probably an official video as stated above are up to come!