Black Wedding
Meet Juha Arvid Helminen. Helminen (AKA Immanuel on Deviant Art) is a Finnish costume designer/photographer that has a unique way of working with horror and beauty. Inspired by the works of artist works of H.R. Giger and the writings of Clive Barker, Juha’s collection of photographs called “The Shadow People” brings upon a definite alluring appeal to the senses while invoking a chill down your spine. The Shadow People seems to dive into the glamorous features of medieval European royalty and the drone-like nature of the Axis empire during World War II. Even with these historic references, Helminen takes these influences and blends them with a hint of horror that you may find in Silent Hill. Beauty is definitely in the eyes of the beholder as Helminen’s subjects in his photography are faceless and emotionless, yet they bring upon many mixed emotions to the viewer. Helminen’s artistic skills do not end with just the photographs as he is also the designer and crafter of the costumes in the photos as well. Helminen offers his photographs as posters for fans to purchase and uses the money to buy materials for his costumes in his photographs.
Considering how much I am a World War II history buff, these photographs invokes a very surreal emotion of romanticism within me. Look at “The Black Wedding” (above) and tell me if you see a Nazi-like monster with his faceless and equally creepy counterpart or do you see a young couple madly in love? Whatever you may think, I have become a loyal fan of Juha Arvid Helminen.
You can check out Juhna Arvid Helminen’s body of work at his Deviant Art page or on MySpace. Hit the jump to see a small sample of “The Shadow People”.
