Illya Knight is being featured a second time, this time we couldn’t help but ask him a few questions.
The first question is from photographer Jay Schoen:
What does ethics and aesthetics mean in art?
Aesthetics to me would be the style of your individual art. Ethics would be a bit harder since as humans we are like sponges, we absorb. That being stated, I don’t feel art would have ethics since everything is relative or subjective. As humans we subjectify the subject and then decide if it’s art or not. There is no real definition of what art is in the dictionary.
The rest are from GUSMEN:
What made you want to become a photographer?
The thing that made me become a photographer is when I as stylist saw what the photographer did not. And when the final result of the shoot came out, it didn’t come out per say of how I thought it would be. So i decided to shoot the way I see it. I never took photography classes, I’m self taught.
What do you want to transmit with your photographs?
I want to show the realness of the subject, I try to direct the subject to become the story, to be real, to be the past. I try to show emotions the we all have experienced in some way, shape or form. I try to push the viewers emotions. I want the viewer to rip the image and use it for inspiration like I did.
Black and white or color?
I prefer black and white, it’s classic, it’s chic…I like it because my favorite color is gray.. mix black and white what do you have…gray.
How does the male body inspire you?
The male body is an interesting form, it’s: bold, slightly cold, hot when it’s clean. I like the form because its “edgy”. I like the sharpness, the hardness, the angles it has compared to a female form.
What was the last thing that really surprised you?
Hmmm that’s a good one, it would be the visuals from the movie called ‘The Last of England’ starring Tilda Swinton. There is this YouTube video of a short clip that I stare at least twice a day.
What is the first thing you do when you get up in the morning?
The first thing I do is look at my phone, I usually text my friends. I open the blinds and stare at the trees, I love the way they look when the wind is moving them…the brisk leaves are dancing.
What would you like to achieve in the future?
I want to leave a legacy. I want the weak to become strong, the gifted to excel.
All in all I want to shoot profound images, to make a person stop and stare and have the image burned in their head.
And finally, what would you ask the next artist that we feature on GUSMEN (without knowing who it is)?
This question may be harsh, but I’d ask the next artist: what makes you differ from other photographers?
Credits:
Photographer/creative director: Illya Knight
Stylist: Jackariaeh Timothy Francis O’hanlon
Make-up: Claudia Lake
Model: Gabriel Severino
