(8) Editorial and Biography for Ana Rita Sousa


This series of analog 35mm photographs was taken in a deserted shopping mall from the 90’s, and establishes the beginning of a collaboration between Ana Rita Sousa and Francisca Marques. The premise was a photographic exploration of the body and its image, questioning this particular space and its limits. The idea of a fashion shoot was used as a vehicle for form.
At the time of the shoot - in June 2017 - a mysterious nineties vibe was still tangible in the golden detailing and the epic marble staircase bathing in golden light. It provided an atmospheric backdrop for the shoot, as well as a cue for the overall direction.
The subversive dimension of a guerilla fashion shoot in an abandoned shopping mall was not entirely incidental.


Ana Rita Sousa is a photographer, designer and creative director currently based in Amsterdam. As a photographer, her curiosity lies with the aesthetic and emotional qualities of unfamiliar spaces. Taking photos is a way for her to relate with these environments, and see what they have to say. Working intuitively, her process is an attempt to document first observations that still contain the mystery of the unknown.

For this project, Ana Rita collaborated with performer and art director Fransisca Marques as a model, adding a human dimension to an otherwise abandoned and derelict shopping mall.

Staged poses very much bother her.