I see my photographs as pieces of my soul" — in conversation with Mari Ornella

Born to Hungarian-Italian parents in Belgium in 1996, Mari Ornella studied sociology before earning her master's degree in photography at Moholy-Nagy University of Arts and Design (MOME). Her graduation project, Through Hardship to the Stars, delves into self-analysis, crossing her own boundaries, society’s unrealistic expectations, issues of femininity, and trauma processing. With this project, she was chosen as one of the artists for Futures Photography, a platform for photography that is co-funded by the European Union, in 2023. Both her personal and commercial projects reflect her humorous, surreal, sincere, and raw style. We spoke about her passion for photography, her creative attitude, and her graduation project.

A. K.

Has creating images always been a means of self-expression for you?

M. O.

As a child, I was fond of drawing and painting. When I was ten, I persuaded my father to get me my first camera, a little pink digital point-and-shoot. Since then, I’ve nearly always had a camera with me. I used to take photos, for example, in the garage where I spent my childhood because my dad worked in an auto repair shop. I began creating a visual diary without even knowing there was such a genre.

A. K.

Since you are half-Italian through your father, you spent a lot of time abroad. How significant was this for you?

M. O.

My father is Italian, but he spoke to me in French, and we lived in Brussels. After my parents separated, I often went back to visit my dad. I know Belgium like the back of my hand, yet remains a foreign territory for me, and I have no connection to it.

However, I have a strong sense of Hungarian identity, and I love being Hungarian. But because of my appearance, I was teased a lot when I was younger, and this created a strange paradox for me in terms of my sense of belonging. For some reason, I’ve always felt separate. I also feel a strong connection to my maternal grandmother's Miskolc ancestry, and I've recently been keen to learn more about my Italian roots.

A. K.

Is your working method intuitive and motivated by your emotions, or is it pre-planned?

M. O.

I mix both approaches. Before creating an image, I often look for visual context, making a mood board that I can relate to. For this, I usually draw inspiration from foreign photographers or art history. So, there’s a framework, but I frequently abandon it during the process and let my intuition or the inspiration of the moment take over. I’d say my work is staged in a way that doesn’t appear staged. There is an intuitive layer that connects to a lived reality. János R. Szabó once described my pictures as magical realism.

A. K.

What are your sources of inspiration? Are there any cinematic periods, artists, or art historical movements that influence you?

M. O.

I have a deep appreciation for Italian films from the 1980s and 1990s, and I often draw inspiration from surrealism in art history. My favorite photographers are Petra Collins and, more recently, Charlie Engmann, who spent ten years photographing his mother in unique scenarios and personas for his series Mom. I am also inspired by photographers who explore feminism and its intricacies.

The works of Cindy Sherman or Marina Abramović’s performances, for instance, had a big impact on me. In my own photography, I incorporate a performative element because I value not only the final image but also the process of creating it, which can sometimes resemble a performance. I often find myself in strange situations when I take photos in public places.

A. K.

How did the idea for your Through Hardship to the Stars series, which was also your graduation project, come about?

M. O.

When I started my master's degree, I initially intended to focus on family research. I was fascinated by the concept of the family, the experiences of growing up in a dysfunctional family, and the circumstances faced by foreign families in Hungary. This evolved into an exploration of fatherlessness, where I sought out girls whose fathers weren’t part of their lives. In my project, my initial focus was on the diverse types of fatherlessness and the potential behavioral dysfunctions they could cause. This interest led me to meet two girls. In the beginning, the project was about them, but after connecting with them, I realized the project was about me and my processes. That's when I started photographing myself, a process that often felt quite natural because I am the only one capable of portraying my experiences.

A. K.

Nudity, as a motif, is present in this series, not just in a physical sense. Can you tell us about this exposure? Was it an uncomfortable position or was it just something that you were able to unfold?

M. O.

I create images to communicate – both to myself and others - the emotions I am experiencing at the time; thus, I see my photographs as pieces of my soul.

In expressing these emotions, I started using my own body as a medium through which I try to show my wounds and traumas. I wanted to treat my body not just as a naked body, but rather as a sculpture that I could dress or undress, a surface on which I could display various items.

A. K.

Body image and the idea of femininity are important themes in this work. Can you elaborate on this a bit?

M. O.

Yes, this appeared as a leitmotif from the start Through it, I began confronting my own body image issues When I entered the project and became its main subject, the photos confronted me, as in the beginning, I would often edit the images later to make myself look like someone I wasn't.

But I knew that I didn’t want to be the byproduct of this work. Instead, I wanted to create something through it. Many people referred to me as “the pretty girl who photographs herself,” but the reason behind it was exactly that I didn’t feel that way. Then, by continuing and receiving feedback from the images, I came to believe that I am, in fact, a good-looking girl, so this turned into a sort of therapeutic process.

A. K.

Your distinctive style is marked by the use of saturated colors and flash. There is directness, unfiltered visibility, and a desire to show off in this use of full light. What does this aesthetic quality mean to you?

M. O.

This is an intriguing question because at first, there were purely practical reasons for using the flash. Later, I realized that highlighting my flaws would help people understand my message and relate to my photos.

A. K.

The series was eventually compiled into a book, where you collaborated with Zalán Péter Salát. Why was this an important step for the project?

M. O.

I created the images with such intensity and accumulated so many ideas that at some point, the material became so vast that I didn’t even know which part of it I wanted to present at the graduation exhibition.

I realized that the process and chapters were most interesting, and a book was the best way to present them. That’s when Zalán entered the picture, and he immediately understood what I wanted. We were able to attune to each other, and I feel the collaboration was a mutual learning process for both of us.

Zalán supported me in everything. For example, I really wanted to include a poster in the book because I loved the posters hidden in teen magazines when I was younger. Another wish of mine was to bind the book with a large red spiral, a task that proved challenging, but we persevered until we successfully produced it through 3D printing.

The Hungarian title of the series is Göröngyös az út a csillagokig ["The Road to the Stars is Bumpy"]. In the book, I specifically wanted to show that if you are passionate about something—in my case, photography—you can become good at it!

A. K.

Is this a completed project? What are your future plans?

M. O.

I’ve received positive feedback from many curators and book publishers, but they also said that I’ll probably never stop doing this. Interestingly, the most exciting photos in the series were the ones where I expressed my emotions without appearing in the picture. I want to continue in this direction. I’m curious about how I can represent core emotions, attachment theory, and family trauma, for example, through a photo of my dog eating a raw fish.

I see my photographs as pieces of my soul” — in conversation with Mari Ornella

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