We’re so used to commercialised Valentines’ day — shiny pink and purple plastic hearts, tacky little stuffed bears, and the same chocolates repackaged in shiny, red boxes. But those things don’t cut through to the heart, do they? Between rushing to pick up supermarket dinner deals, or fussing over whether to buy them roses, when do we catch a moment to reflect on what any of the romance behind Valentines’ Day actually means?
The photographs in Love Story, a new photographic anthology from Hoxton Mini Press, captures small moments of intimacy, tenderness and love without any fuss. This is both a celebration of love, and a magnifying glass to the everyday moments of connection between us. From first love, to lost love, these intimate portraits express the tenderness and vulnerability, passion and patience of this powerful emotion. Beyond romantic love, Love Story also includes gorgeous and heart-wrenching images of friends, siblings, parents and children, and communities expressing their care for each other.
Featuring sweet, reflective prose about the many shades of love, Love Story cuts through what we’re supposed to think love is, and straight to what it actually is in a singular, authentic moment.
‘Love Story: New Photography on Love and Intimacy‘ is available now.
9781914314353 / Hardback / £20
Written by Rachel Segal Hamilton
Photographers featured: Curtis Hughes, Deanna Dikeman, Lisa Sorgini, Lucas Bori, Ed Templeton, Erica Reade, Hilary Gauld, Leah Monsour, Jess T. Dugan, Andreas Reeg, Marna Clarke, Magnus Holmes, Matt Weber, Mikaël Theimer, Karen Rosetzsky, Megan K Eagles, Richard Renaldi, Roland Schmid, Rona Bar and Ofek Avshalom, Mirja Maria Thiel, Sophie Harris-Taylor, Maureen Drennan, and Paddy Summerfield.
