Nick Knight does not see the world like other people – and this is meant quite literally. ‘I suppose synesthesia is a condition in my family,’ clarifies the photographer. ‘My brother sees colours for various days of the week, for letters and that sort of thing. And when I take a picture I hear a certain harmonious sound when I know it is right. I am often not even looking when I take a picture, well not looking with my eyes, it is intuition. I am anticipating a movement, a sense of what will come in the future, then the harmony, the sound, becomes just right in my head and I know I have got the right image.’ It is no surprise then that Nick Knight has always been ahead of the game when it comes to the image making process and this synesthesia has helped him to transfer his talents to moving image very easily. This year sees the tenth anniversary of the photographers’ ground breaking web site showstudio.com, a site set up in the main part to explore his interest in the moving fashion image.

It is also a place where he continues to experiment in the digital medium, something he was always a forerunner in. ‘I suppose I am trying to create something new, something that just has not been seen before, to see the world in a new way.’ Perhaps it is no wonder then that GaGa has become the photographer’s latest muse, a partner in crime to do much of this exploring with and to push boundaries of the medium even further alongside…

How do you see things differently?
Well, the harmony in my head does dictate certain things. I remember seeing Shalom Harlow modelling in front of my camera in New York and her movements were music, it was quite beautiful. Like a fantastic piece of jazz… apart from the fact I don’t like jazz that much!

How has this been affected by the technology you use?
That combining of shape and form is made easier digitally. Waiting for the shapes to work and feel harmonious goes on in front of the camera and away from it as well, where I will cut and paste them to make it feel right, to make the composition – in both senses of the word – correct. It also works like that in the 3D sculptures that I do. Like the one of GaGa and her piano.

What is the overall aim of your work?
I think what I work on is desire. Desire to experience something I have not experienced, to see things I have not seen, to be involved in something I have not been involved in. It works on lots of different levels both socially and artistically, but it is desire.

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