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APPETITES By Jumbo Tsui and Jake Martin
In Appetites, we explore the quiet, intimate moments that unfold when we are alone with ourselves—how food, the body, and solitude intertwine in personal spaces. Through diptychs pairing fragments of the body with images of food, we invite viewers into rooms where small, private rituals of care, hunger, desire, and lingering take place. Though each scene is thoughtfully composed, we aimed to capture a sense of lived-in presence—as if the subjects have just stepped away, or linger in a moment of waiting.
In Final Meal, we explore the quiet, intimate moments that unfold when we are alone with ourselves
(TOP: CHARLOTTE ROBINSON wears TOP by COU COU INITIMATES, KNICKERS by STYLIST'S OWN) (BOTTOM: RUIQI JIANG wears DRESS by LAURA ANDRASCHKO, SHORTS by MIU MIU, KNICKERS by AGENT PROVOCATEUR)
The body appears in glimpses — a hand resting lightly on skin, the dramatic curve of a back—never fully revealed. The food remains simple, unadorned, sometimes half-eaten or willfully abandoned. Together, these paired images speak a quiet language between desire and hunger, absence and longing.
we invite viewers into rooms where small, private rituals of care, hunger, desire, and lingering take place.
RAPHAÉ MEMON wears NAVY BRIEFS by CDLP, and WHITE TANK TOP by POUR LUI
We place the viewer as a gentle intruder—close enough to witness, yet still held at a distance. This creates a tender tension between being seen and remaining hidden, between physical craving and emotional ache.
The body appears in glimpses
(TOP: CHARLEY DEAN SAYERS wears TOP by MARIEYAT, KNICKERS by MAISON MARGIELA and TIGHTS by FALKE) (BOTTOM: TODD LAMMING and WHITE TRUNK by CDLP)
In these hushed domestic moments, the echoes of sex—its bliss, its disappointment, or the ache for a partner’s touch—linger softly and remain unspoken rather than on display.
Together, these paired images speak a quiet language between desire and hunger, absence and longing.
(TOP: ALEK WALENT wears BODYSUIT by LAURA ANDRASCHKO and STOCKINGS by CHARNOS) (MIDDLE: JING CLEAVER-LYEN wears BRA by MISS CROFTON and KNITTED PANTS by KATYA ZELENTSOVA) (BOTTOM: TODD LAMMING wears BEIGE THONG by MODEL’S OWN and POLKA DOTS TIGHTS by FALKE)
For us, Final Meal reflects the private rituals we return to when alone—small gestures laden with both comfort and yearning.
we aimed to capture a sense of lived-in presence—as if the subjects
have just stepped away, or linger in a moment of waiting.
RUIQI JIANG wears SHORTS by MIU MIU and TOP AND TIGHTS by LOU DE BÈTOLY
The work dwells in the space between hunger and fulfillment, presence and absence, holding the delicate ache for connection that remains long after the moment has passed - the taste still on our lips.
small gestures laden with both comfort and yearning.
(TOP: MINMIE SANGSAWANG wears SHORTS by LOU DE BÈTOLY and T-SHIRT by LAURA ANDRASCHKO) (BOTTOM: MEIXUAN CHENG wears SOCKS by MODEL’S OWN)
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The Past is Ahead
My family has been visiting Patmos for over 40 years, and I’ve returned nearly every summer since I was three. Last year I documented the lives of the locals.
Mirrors became portals, capturing the past as I moved through the present.
This year, uncertain of what story to tell, I found clarity while riding my moped: in the wing mirror, I saw Chora — the monastery I had just left — perfectly reflected behind me.
I found clarity while riding my moped.
That fleeting image sparked the concept. Mirrors became portals, capturing the past as I moved through the present. Each photograph is a reflection of places that have become symbolic over time — from the ferry port that marks every arrival to the island’s sun-washed bus stops. A visual meditation on time, this series is about looking back as we move forward — where history, memory, and motion continuously intersect.
Each photograph is a reflection of places that have become symbolic over time.
Laurel Thoma's Nine Silver Gelatin Prints
I usually like the imperfect print—the one where the tones shift or it almost looks like a drawing.
Do you have a “that is the one” moment? How do you know when you’re finished? Or do you?
I do. It’s automatic. I usually like the imperfect print—the one where the tones shift or it almost looks like a drawing. That’s when it feels finished, when it’s not too finished. I just know when I've got it right even when it's wrong.
Why did you choose silver gelatin prints for your book? Is there a personal connection or reason you wanted to use it for your self-portraits?
I was drawn to photography because of darkroom printing. Everything else is just to get to that. I have an affinity for the darkroom. I don’t think the work really works without it. The print exists before the photo does.
What role does vulnerability play in your work?
I don’t know. People always say my work is vulnerable but I think it’s just me taking pictures of myself. I think everyone should take more pictures of themselves.
How do you navigate self-observation without self-objectification?
I don’t really worry about it. I don’t think about it. Being an object isn’t so bad. I just look. Sometimes I’m the thing, sometimes I’m the watcher. It doesn’t matter. It’s all just part of the picture. I’m a young woman now, but I won’t always be. The picture is what matters. 'She' doesn’t run the narrative. I see myself through the eyes of the other and I give the image the same credit.
If you keep everything, it becomes important.
Do you see the archive as a form of autobiography, or something more fluid and imaginative?
I just like collecting things. I keep everything. If you keep everything, it becomes important. And you start to see patterns. The story tells itself.
How do you decide what belongs in the personal archive versus what gets left behind?
It’s all personal.
Are there any other types of photography or mediums that you want to work with next?
I want to do something more documentary. I like subcultures. So many ways of living fascinate me. It’s more interesting when it’s not about me. I feel it more when I’m not the center.
It’s all personal.
Any upcoming projects in the works?
Yes. Nine Silver Gelatin Prints comes from a larger body of self portrait work I’ve been making over the past three years. It’s my first photo book. A kind of personal landmark. Something I’ve carried for a long time before putting it out.
If you weren’t doing this what would you be doing?
Watching other people do it.
What is your ideal office?
Somewhere between a church and a basement.
Nine Silver Gelatin Prints, self-published for the Polaroids, Small Prints & Ephemera exhibition, is available through Claire De Rouen Books (London), Dashwood Books (New York), and Yvon Lambert (Paris).
