ANAHELL

The surreal inhabitants of the real world

Where are Secret Friends’ series from?

Secret Friends are a paracosm, an imaginative child's play that gave birth to a new creature that is inserted in ordinary places, performing everyday banal activities like taking a selfie or brushing their teeth.

In a way I document people's lives and cities with a twist, a small bend of reality that creates a new perspective. I've photographed Secret Friends in several continents and multiple cities, often using local models that pose wearing their own clothes in their own houses or favourite spaces around town.

How do you choose the characters of your photos?

Each character is created very spontaneously depending on where I'm shooting and the people I meet. All of the faces are drawn on the spot without much (or any) pre-planning. I travel really light without any studio equipment and only a few wigs, props, eyeliners and lipsticks. I let each person and place be its own inspiration for the character.

Which are the words that best describe your job and why?

Hectic: because I shoot fast and light while travelling through a city, many times I don't have a fixed plan of where I'm going or what character I'm going to create, so there's a lot of running around to find interesting shooting spots and the right people to pose for me.

Fun: each shooting is really different but I try to keep the fun factor high and it's not hard with this project since models don't have to look 'beautiful' or show their faces they just let loose and there's a lot of goofing around on set.

Spontaneous: I usually create each character and pose on the go.

Has your job been influenced by who or what?

This project was born during a shooting with my sister (who's one of my favorite models) while we were looking for surreal body positions that would trick the eye. She got into a resting position and suddenly I saw this character form before my eyes and I ran and got an eyeliner out and drew two circles on her back.

I have a tendency to see faces and patterns in objects, and I love creating characters that look a bit cartoonish or strange. I'm also very intrigued by transformation and interested in exploring the topics of identity, duality and playing with the concept of what is real and what is fake.

BIO

Ana Hell is a Spanish photographer with a background in illustration. Her photographs reveal her passion for absurd and surreal situations that sometimes go unnoticed in everyday life. She molds and plays with bodies as if they were her drawings and her camera is just a quicker way to draw.