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When goth/erotic/BrokenGirlz photographer Mallorie Nasrallah got her first Polaroid at ten years old, she started shooting, and hasn't stopped since. Now a twenty-year-old woman in Virginia, Nasrallah isn't the most obvious candidate for shooting provocative, artful, sexy photos of alterna-babes while taking on the integrity of the mainstream erotic punk-grrl art venues. We spoke with the budding artist about her own integrity, what she finds sexy, and how to seek out true beauty.
Sez G: You've said that you hate that every model in erotic photography has to look like a Barbie and that "every photo I take is a statement against it." Tell me how your reaction to mainstream erotica developed.
Mallorie Nasrallah: I could rant about the current standard for beauty, but I honestly believe that it's natural to admire perfection, be it in a lovely landscape, an amazing painting, or a woman. However I do not believe that beauty can be enhanced by a surgeon's scalpel. I do not believe that beauty can be enhanced by any amount of work in Photoshop. At that point it becomes a lie, and lies are nothing but ugly.
Honesty, confidence and forthrightness are beautiful, and I like to think that my work allows anyone with any standards to appreciate those traits and to see a woman who says "Here I am, and dammit, I'm proud of it". It is both the most romantic and beautiful concept in the world.
Sez G: Is it true you live in Norfolk, Virginia? Is that where you're from, do you plan to stay, and how do you think that location has influenced your art?
Mallorie Nasrallah: Yes I live in Norfolk. I've only been here for about a year, but it is in that year that my work has really started to boom. I think it's due in part to the models in the area, and also because for the first time in my life I'm with a supportive partner.
I moved here from North Carolina: Boone, to be specific. As for planning to stay, I couldn't say. My husband is in the navy, and where I'll be in the near future is almost entirely up to them.
I don't believe any one location is that much different or better than another. I suppose if I had stayed in the mountain town I grew up in you might see a lot more landscapes from me, but I would still be shooting.
Sez G: You have a very eclectic group of rebellious Suicide Girls-looking models in your portfolio. Where do you meet your models and how well do you know them?
Mallorie Nasrallah: About half of my models have seen my work online and eventually set up a shoot...it's a pretty mundane method. The other half are local girls. Most of them come from our local goth night at a club here. When I first moved to this area I went to that club and established myself.
I know some of my models very well, one was my maid of honor in my wedding, another helped me though the drastic move to Virginia, and I spent 6+ hours on the phone one night helping another model fix her computer... I have a pretty comfortable relationship with most of the girls I work with.
Sez G: Speaking of Suicide Girls, you mention you have some moral issues with their contracts. What's your personal history with them?
Mallorie Nasrallah: I consider myself a polite person, so I will forgo any mud slinging... however I also see a bold line of right and wrong in the field I work in. I think the concept of ownership of a model (person) is wrong, and that seems to be the base platform for the SG site. I think building illusions to lure models and clients in is wrong, and again that seems to be all SG has going for them.
I believe in life all a person has is their word, and when you make your word worthless you are left with nothing. SG has time and time again broken their word, making them worthless and untrustworthy in my book.
Sez G: Guns often make an appearance in your photos, usually pointed at the viewer. Do you think guns are sexy?
Mallorie Nasrallah: Who doesn't? But really, I think the idea of a dangerous woman on the prowl is the most sexy thing in the world. The pointing of the guns at the viewer isn't all my doing; usually when I hand the model a gun its one of the first things she does... it just seems to be the most natural thing for them.
Sez G: How do you think being a female photographer has helped or hurt your artistic career?
Mallorie Nasrallah: Well I can walk right up to a girl and ask her to model for me, which for most men is a big no-no. Quite often they take my card and eventually call me up for a shoot. Most male photographers I talk to say that has never happened for them.
In addition to that, I think my work has a different flare. When looking though collective works of photographers I can almost always pick out the photos taken by a woman. In my work, I see it as a playfulness. Yes the models are sexy, but there is also this cute flirty element that I see in my work that is less common in my male counterparts'.
Thus far is has never hurt my career, thank God, because its not something I can really change.
Sez G: Your models often have a lot of vibrant, colorful make-up on. Do you have a stylist on set?
Mallorie Nasrallah: I do offer a make-up artist, but as a lot of my shoots are free for the models, I ask that if they want to use her, they cover her fee. Aside from the rare occasions where someone helps with the make-up, it's all the work of the models.
I do tell the model in preparation for the shoot that a little more than she usually would wear is never a bad thing.
Sez G: You look very young! How did you get started in photography, and how did it evolve into the erotic?
Mallorie Nasrallah: I am young! Twenty to be exact. I asked for my first camera for my tenth birthday. I got a little Polaroid, which I adored, but at ten I didn't really understand what I was doing… just that I loved taking photos. It progressed from there.
My family was poor so I never worked with film; I knew that if I tried I would end up with rolls and rolls of film that I couldn't afford to develop. When I was fourteen I took my first erotic photo: the older sister of one of my friends was home from college and wanted photos for her boyfriend. I'm actually still pretty proud of the photos from that session. One hangs on the wall in my dressing room. From that point on, I didn't really want to shoot much else. There was such grace in those photos, and movement. Every pose looked like a dance.
Sez G: Tell me about the razor blade shoot.
Mallorie Nasrallah: That is actually one of my more basic shoots. The model's husband applied the razors (I didn't want to be in the papers as a photographer stabbing a model if I dropped one or something). The model was wearing one of my PVC tops, another upside to being female. The set was shot to go on BrokenDollz.com.
Sez G: What's next for you?
Mallorie Nasrallah: Honestly? I have no idea. One day I would like to shoot fashion. My dream is to be in Italian Vogue, where I can work a mix of fashion and erotica. For now though I'm just happy to be shooting on a regular basis, to have good relationships with all my models, and have a supportive husband.
To learn more about Mallorie Nasrallah visit www.MallorieNasrallah.com.
Mallorie Nasrallah - by Sez G.
