These portraits aim to show porn stars in a different light
'They're just twenty-something girls. Some of them are in college. One of them is reading Joseph Conrad.'
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.When he headed to the infamous AVN Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas last year, photographer Roger Kisby was on a mission to capture the industry biggest stars off-duty.
"It was kind of challenge, how to shoot them in a way that not necessarily hasn't been done before," Kisby told The Huffington Post. "These are people who are photographed constantly. How do I make something a little more genuine and authentic?"
His answer was to take them away from badly lit Ikea sets and photograph them - shoulders up for a change - against a black background.
"They have a certain way they’re used to being shot," he told Slate. "They’d have a kind of porn look that they do - the sexy eyes and pouty lips. You’ll still see that in some of the pictures I’ve shown. But I tried to steer them away from that."
View Roger Kisby's 'Head' in full here
Riley Reid
Evan Stone
Sara Vibes
Nina Hartley
Samantha Mack
James Deen
Chanel Preston
It would have been obvious to have the actors and actresses clothed for the shoot, ingeniously titled 'Head', but Kisby wanted to hint at nudity/their profession in them.
"How do I show a genuine, intimate portrait of XXX actors without showing them sexually?" he asked. "How do I get to the heart of who they are?
Bonnie Rotten
Dakota Skye
Carter Cruise
Valentina Nappi
Anri Okita
Little Red Bunny
"My thought was simple portraits, isolated on a single color [with a] black background. Have them take off their shirts so there is the implied nudity ... I wanted to show them as real people, humans. I'm not trying to say, 'They're just like us.'"
I take issue with this a little - porn is a more viable career now and it doesn't need an exhibition to see that these are "real people" – but the portraits are intriguing all the same.
"They're just twenty-something girls," Kisby added. "Some of them are in college. One of them is reading Joseph Conrad."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments