Inside rising photographer Gabriel Moses’ debut exhibition

At 17 years previous, Gabriel Moses spent his days making brief movies about his buddies on the soccer pitch. He would direct and shoot them in step with his artistic imaginative and prescient, after which add them to YouTube the place they’d get not more than 100 views. “That didn’t matter to me,” Moses tells Dazed. “There was a way of accomplishment in creating one thing that was in your head for the world to see.”

Now, simply three years later, Moses – who has rapidly established himself as one in all London’s most prolific photographers and filmmakers – is gearing up for his first solo exhibition, Regina at 180 The Strand. The present will embody between 50 to 60 images from his work throughout style, music and sport, and can premiere two brief movies, together with Ijó which follows a bunch of younger ballet dancers on the Leap of Dance Academy in Lagos, Nigeria, and Regina, which options performances from various Moses’ buddies. Alongside being the youngest photographer to ever shoot the quilt of Dazed, the present is simply the newest in an extended record of the photographer’s accomplishments.

“My profession has at all times been filled with moments the place somebody presents me a possibility, even this exhibition, at a time that makes numerous sense,” he explains. “It’s humorous the way it takes individuals who consider in your stuff earlier than it is sensible to everybody else.”

There isn’t any doubt that Moses’ rise inside the artistic industries has been meteoric, however style pictures wasn’t at all times on the playing cards. Rising up, Moses describes being surrounded by his sister’s reference photographs that she assembled as a part of her style research. “On the time I didn’t suppose it was fascinating,” he remembers. It was solely when he picked up his first digital camera in his late teenagers that he began to develop an curiosity in style – and a eager eye for what he believed makes a phenomenal picture.

His thought of magnificence has since resonated with lots of his contemporaries. Moses, who’s self-taught, has in a short while developed a definite model characterised by deep tones and wealthy textures. His photographs are truthful, genuine, complicated, and narrative-driven, composed of characters impressed by reminiscence and fantasy in equal measure. The general goal, he says, is to create trustworthy artwork that transcends time; and artwork that celebrates the ladies which have formed who he’s at present. 

Forward of his exhibition opening, Moses speaks with Dazed about religion, group and the ability of collective reminiscence.

What impressed the title of the exhibition, Regina? 


Gabriel Moses: ‘Regina’ is definitely the identify of my studio, nevertheless it additionally means ‘queen’ in Latin. This present is a salute to the ladies in my life; my sister, my nieces, my grandma. I’ve at all times had an enormous respect for the ladies in my life and the position they’ve performed in all the pieces about me: the way in which I converse to folks, the respect I’ve for others.

After which [the show] additionally references Regina, the signature that the Queen would use to log off her letters. I at all times discovered it fairly fascinating truly, prefer it’s the identical factor while you go to Crown Court docket: a case is at all times Regina versus [the individual]. The phrase has so many connotations to totally different folks.

The present is made up of round 50 images out of your profession throughout style, music, and sport. What are the required elements to creating a picture you’re happy with? 


Gabriel Moses: I’ve had my studio since July. Earlier than that, I labored so much from my bed room and by no means actually archived or organised my pictures. I might simply preserve churning out work over the previous two or three years with out reflecting on what I had carried out. We change into a bit like machines in that sense, at all times centered on what’s subsequent with out trying again. It wasn’t till I collected all the pieces I’d carried out and put it onto one doc that I realised how a lot I had truly carried out: like, at what level did I do all this?

Trying again, I realised that I had been creating work that represented me and the way I see the world. I do it subconsciously. I’m very cussed about what I see as lovely; I don’t care what others have carried out prior to now. It’s all in the identical world… all my editorial, superstar, and music work join visually.

“I need my work to have a way of timelessness – in that it may have simply as simply been shot in 2023 because it may have been shot in a very totally different time interval” – Gabriel Moses

You reference black-and-white ancestral pictures as having formed your aesthetic. In what methods has it knowledgeable the tone, composition and material of Regina?

Gabriel Moses: I really like Malick Sidibé’s work, each visually and by way of the topics he photographed. Again within the day in Mali, folks would go by [his] studio to have their pictures taken. You see so many various characters [in his work], from youngsters to troopers to folks celebrating their birthdays. He discovered magnificence in on a regular basis folks and in the neighborhood. It’s the identical approach I strategy my casting as in how can I create characters inside this world?

I additionally [look to] household pictures, like photos of my grandma. After I have a look at her pictures, I see confidence in the way in which she dressed and used tones. I additionally love the feel of the photographs in the identical approach that once we have a look at previous household pictures it’s like, what’s it that we like about them? Is it the tones? Or is it the truth that it’s an aged photograph, so it seems to be a sure approach or has a specific texture? I wish to create that feeling at present. That’s why numerous my work is closely textured. I need my work to have a way of timelessness – in that it may have simply as simply been shot in 2023 because it may have been shot in a very totally different time interval.

And in what approach do themes associated to reminiscence – each collective and particular person – recur all through the present?


Gabriel Moses: My style comes from my recollections – I didn’t research any of this at school. I wrestle to observe movies; I’ve acquired a correct brief consideration span. It’s the identical with pictures. It’s solely lately I’ve begun learning different photographers and style imagery from the previous. A whole lot of my pursuits come from recollections of being round my sister rising up when she was learning style. She had reference photographs mendacity round her bed room, however on the time I didn’t suppose something of it. I believed it was shit.

However then, the second I picked up a digital camera, it was like I knew what a pleasant picture was. I really like lovely issues, and my mum undoubtedly understood that in me. She’d organize flowers in the home and run arts and crafts workshops at Sunday college. She was all about pushing creativity. At 17, I used to be very assured in my style and in my capacity to belief what I see as lovely. 

You might be premiering two new brief movies that you’ve each written and directed as a part of the exhibition. What was the artistic course of behind the movie? 

Gabriel Moses: I keep in mind coming throughout Leap of Dance Academy, a ballet college in western Lagos, and I used to be blown away. I had at all times needed to create a movie a couple of self-discipline with youngsters as a result of I discover them so fascinating. I’ve at all times liked how youngsters love everybody, ? They don’t care what work you do. As adults, we change into extra inflexible and give attention to superficial issues like work, however youngsters don’t care about these issues.

“At 17, I used to be very assured in my style and in my capacity to belief what I see as lovely” – Gabriel Moses 

How concerning the movie Regina? How do the themes within the movie construct in your present physique of labor?

Gabriel Moses: Regina is enjoyable. I by no means discovered the technical methods to make movies or take pictures, so I actually simply went off my intuition, and what I see as cool and exquisite. Regina is a mirrored image of my creativeness in a movie; like a collection of moments that I’ve discovered fascinating and that I needed to deliver out to the world. It’s what I see after I shut my eyes. The movie options wonderful performances from numerous folks, together with a few of my buddies. It’s a little bit of a large number; there are a lot of clips from Regina obtainable on-line that collectively kind one lengthy movie.

It sounds a bit like the way you described the primary few movies you made that you just dropped on Youtube. 

Gabriel Moses: Yeah, precisely. The best way I work is that I’ve an thought, I make it occur, after which I drop it on the web. I don’t observe the standard route of getting it printed or something like that. If 5 folks see it, or if 500 folks see it, that’s my viewers, ? I do not overthink the method, I’m identical to, let’s do it.

I don’t put any stress on myself as a result of I really feel like I’ve nothing to lose. Day by day that I get up is a blessing, and every single day that I’m able to do what I do for a residing is already a win for me.

Gabriel Moses’ Regina is operating at 180 The Strand from April 5 till April 30, 2023.

Editor’s notice: This interview has been edited and condensed for functions of readability and size.

Be part of Dazed Membership and be a part of our world! You get unique entry to occasions, events, festivals and our editors, in addition to a free subscription to Dazed for a 12 months. Be part of for £5/month at present.