Michelle Watt explores the complexity of Asian American id by way of her surrealist pictures

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There are those who take photos and those who make photos, to paraphrase the legendary photographer Ansel Adams.

Michelle Watt is firmly the latter. Her richly hued, surrealist compositions — whether she’s shooting a magazine cover or working on a personal project — are brought to life through elaborate productions, involving teams of set designers, wardrobe stylists and makeup artists.

For Watt, creating these intricate images is a form of therapy — a way for her to process traumas and personal experiences.

“It’s not really an inspiration as much as it’s a compulsion to work it out,” she told CNN in a recent interview. “Deconstructing it through staging and storytelling and narrative in these symbolic ways ends up being a really healing way of dealing with those things.”

An image from Michelle Watt's series "Lunar Geisha."

An image from Michelle Watt’s series “Lunar Geisha.” Credit: Michelle Watt

Her portrait series “Lunar Geisha,” published in Blanc Magazine, is an exploration of Asian American female identity. Using the geisha as a…

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