‘Anything Can Become Erotic’: Harley Weir On Sex and SHADOW-BAN

by Joshua Graham on 24 October 2024

With two of her provocative works central to the SHADOW-BAN exhibition, we sit down with Harley Weir to talk about erotica and censorship.

With two of her provocative works central to the SHADOW-BAN exhibition, we sit down with Harley Weir to talk about erotica and censorship.

Harley Weir is no stranger to challenging conventions in contemporary photography. While fashion editorials and campaigns for brands like KNWLS and Gucci have made the London-based image-maker a household name, it’s her exploration of the complexities of womanhood through portraiture that has made her a transformative force in the industry. Delving into the intimate narratives that define feminine identity, her compositions are easily recognised by a warmth that conjures notions of desire and vulnerability, inviting viewers into a dialogue that transcends the surface of her subjects.

As part of SHOWstudio’s exhibition SHADOW-BAN, two of Weir’s works exemplify her daring reframing of female desire within the patriarchal erotic canon. The abstract portrait, 'Egg, 2015/2024,' presents a woman with auburn hair and alabaster skin pressed against the breast of another. It’s calm and reflective. With eyes closed, the tender scene is both raw and sensual, evoking a sense of intimacy that challenges conventional portrayals of femininity in erotica that are more often explicit and objectifying. Instead of sensationalising the female form, Weir captures a moment of connection and vulnerability.

'Egg, 2015/2024' by Harley Weir

Through striking compositions like ‘Bits, 2014,’ Weir encourages a dialogue about the multifaceted nature of pleasure and the power dynamics inherent in how the female body is represented. Folding fabric and sensuous lines become sapphic, blurring the boundaries between abstraction and representation. Against a vivid scarlet backdrop, viewers are invited to contemplate the commodification and censorship of womanhood. The rich colours and dynamic shapes evoke feelings of desire and intimacy, challenging traditional notions of eroticism that often prioritise the male gaze.

We caught up with the renowned image-maker to discuss her exploration of the erotic, social media, and getting shadow banned.

Joshua Graham: Is it important to you as an artist to explore the erotic in your work?

Harley Weir: 'It's not, but it always seems to happen. As much as I might like to hold it in. I'm not kidding. I find myself actively trying not to make the work pervy or erotic or think about how I can remove the sexual nature. And I do try, and it just doesn't seem to work very well.'

JG: What makes a work erotic?

HW: 'I found a picture I liked of an instrument. It was just an instrument and this conductor that I photographed once. But still, it looked really erotic. It’s difficult because I think most things, anything can become erotic.'

JG: Do you think that viewing is a subconscious thing?

HW: 'When I was, I don't know, 13, I remember doing a drawing and I was really excited about it. The teacher asked to speak to me at break time and I thought she was going to be like, ‘This is really good, Harley!’. On the contrary, she said it was perverse and not healthy. It was just a naked lady but because I was young, I didn't realise she was holding something that looked phallic.'

'Most depictions of women were from a man's point of view. So I was made with that. I can't take it away,' - Harley Weir

JG: Do you think that puritanical view about sex is stifling to creatives?

HW: 'I did feel very shameful. I was so embarrassed, especially because I had that feeling that I was excited to be, praised, I suppose. And then you get that reaction. But I think you have that feeling many times over your life. I guess with the idea of being shadow banned, sometimes you put something up and you don't even realise it's provocative. And then you become shameful.'

JG: Are those social media guidelines in the back of your mind when you’re creating?

HW: 'There are a lot of things I don't post because a lot of my work does have nudity. But I do think the whole world is censored now. So it can be scary to say anything.'

'I just did an interesting project on abortion rights in Texas and was listening to people's points of view on the ban there. There was one guy, he was just out of prison, and I stopped to talk to him. He had some really interesting things to say. He was like, 'We have to stop trying to see each other, eye to eye. We have to be more neutral and accept that other people are going to have different points of view and not try to change them and just accept that.' I think there's often one overriding view that people have, at least appear to have, on social media in particular. I liked what he was saying. It was very interesting.'

JG: Do you think you fall in that? That ideology?

HW: 'It's so hard actually. When you just can't imagine that other people wouldn't understand you, you know?'

JG: I think that there's so much division and this idea that you have to convert everyone to see the world how you see it can be incredibly limiting. Not everyone is going to think the sky is the exact shade of blue.

HW: 'Who knows what everyone sees? And so many people are colour blind and that's really interesting too.'

JG: As a female image-maker how do you view the idea of erotica and the depiction of female sexuality? Do you think about the dynamic between empowerment and exploitation when you're creating?

HW: 'Of course. It's hard not to accidentally fall into those tropes. My whole life, I was made, I was created watching imagery of myself. I think now things are a bit different because there is lots of imagery made by women of women. But obviously when I was growing up, everything was TK. All the porn I watched was directed by a guy. All the films I watched were directed by a guy. All the books I read were written by the man. Most depictions of women were from a man's point of view. So I was made with that. I can't take it away. You know, it's so deep inside me that I probably have become partially a vision of what a man wanted me to be because of everything that I ever watched was always that way.'

'Maybe there's a chance for people born now to have something a bit different. But I think it might be so far deep in me that it's quite hard not to become that, and so it is empowering in a way, and also not in a way, to continue those traditions. Really you are just becoming what you were supposed to become. From everything you ever absorbed.'

‘Bits, 2014' by Harley Weir

JG: I think you'd go insane if you thought about it all the time.

HW: 'But I think it's important because you have to think how much imagery, like fashion imagery, really affects people. It's an image that can be seen globally by young girls. It might feel like it's completely obsolete and vacuous, but I really think it does have an effect. I know when I was younger it affected me. So I would say that it's definitely a photographer's duty to try and be thoughtful in that process when they're thinking about images of people's bodies.'

JG: How do you think your exploration of erotica contributes to bigger conversations about women and the body and identity?

HW: 'Like I was kind of saying, about the idea of media and those images being seen by young girls and and the importance of shaping growing minds. Looking at images and seeing what they think is, is right or wrong.'

JG: Sorry, it's really is a loaded question.

HW: 'It's hard sometimes when people put that weight on you. The idea that I should be doing better and I get a lot of comments and nasty things said online. People are thinking I'm not doing what I should be doing because people do seem to think that I should have some kind of duty. And actually, I don't like that because you know, it's just little old me and I make mistakes and I want to be able to make mistakes. You can't really learn if you don't make mistakes. I always remember someone saying, 'If you haven't done bad things, you don't really know what they are.' But I do feel I have a duty to try. And make it a good message.'

JG: I think as a culture we put a lot of weight on artists, especially once a creative has a platform, to have all the answers. And the truth is nobody has all the answers.

HW: 'Those that don't work commercially don't feel like there's less pressure than to make something that is globally acceptable. And I do hate being constrained sometimes. Hate is a strong word, but I do dislike, being held to those constraints of having to be politically correct. I feel everyone feels that weight at the moment because of cancel culture.'

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