Three questions to Sophie Le Gendre
Sophie Le Gendre (b. 1966, France) is an artist based in Paris and passionate about photography. She is recognised by the Fine Art photography community as a woman with innovative talents.
Her decorative and transcendental works illuminate our vision, stirring and piercing our intimate memories without warning. Each photograph is a poem, an ode to life, radiating unfailing optimism. Sophie embraces her role as the guardian of light, masterfully working with illumination, shadows, and intricate details to craft images that transcend mere observation.
Her goal is to evoke pure emotions and unveil the intimate, sometimes hidden truths within each subject she captures. Every image aims to be more than a reflection of the world; it becomes a means of expression, exploring fragility, beauty, or the tension of a moment. For Sophie, photography is a way to give voice to silence, conveying what words often cannot express.
Accustomed to rewards, in France and abroad, Sophie won the prestigious contest «Objectif femmes» (Paris, 2019), the first prize for Photography at the Florence Biennale (Italy, 2021) and a New York press prize. Her works are regularly published in renowned magazines such as Open Eye magazine, Elle International, Clam Magazine, Art Newspaper Daily.
Could you tell us more about your background and what led you to become a photographer?
I have always been immersed in art, with a family of architects and studies in visual communication that have nurtured my artistic sensitivity and 3D vision. My imagination and insatiable curiosity naturally led me to photography, a medium that allows me to explore, tell stories, and create immersive experiences.
But what drives me above all is the power of the image: the staging, the light, the suspended moment. Through photography, I compose, I shape, I bring an emotion or atmosphere to life. It is a dialogue between my gaze and the world, a way to immortalize the ephemeral and create meaning beyond the captured instant.
Is there a particular reason behind your preference for photographing flowers?
I have always been fascinated by the fragility and magnificence of flowers. They embody an ephemeral beauty, a radiance that lasts only a moment before fading away. Through photography, I seek to capture this delicacy, to reveal what the eye does not always perceive: the transparency of a petal, the almost tactile texture of a corolla, the light that passes through and caresses their forms.
By enlarging them and framing them differently, I make them exist in a new way. I elevate them to a new grace, offering them a magnified, almost sculptural presence. This intimate work allows me to unveil their essence, to suspend their fleeting nature, and to prolong their radiance beyond their natural cycle.
Could you tell us more about your work process in the studio?
In the studio, transparency is at the heart of my work. I love using light to reveal what is often imperceptible: the delicacy of a petal, the veins of a leaf, the texture of skin. Through this method, I expose every detail, unveiling the very essence of the subject, its deep, almost anatomical structure.
I play with light to traverse the material, shaping it until it reveals a new dimension of the subject. By enlarging these details and isolating them, I give them a magnified, almost surreal presence. My approach is both meticulous and instinctive, always seeking to capture the moment when beauty becomes almost tangible, when the invisible becomes visible.
Our top selection of Sophie's works
