BA Photography

Gregory Barker, a graduating BA Photography student at London College of Communication, will be showing portraits of hypnotised models at the course's
summer show.

When taking a photograph of a person, Barker believes that the model will begin to mould themselves, consciously or otherwise, into an outer projection of their self that illustrates how they wish to be perceived by the outer world. Baker stripped his subjects of their ability to think about their poses in the conventional way by hypnosis.

The process began by bringing in professional stage hypnotist and hypnotherapist Kris von Sponneck. In the photography studio at LCC, Barker briefed him about the project and what he wanted from the shoot.

Barker said: "I met the subjects and took them to the studio. They knew that they were to be hypnotised but not what they were going to be asked to do whilst in this state. The hypnotist then explained how hypnotism worked. The models were sat behind a screen, hypnotised and led in front of the camera one by one, where they could not be seen by the others."

The three models had known each other for around 20 years. They were asked to firstly act as themselves and how they wished to be seen, then as one another.

Barker said: "The models show no embarrassment in how they present themselves when performing as themselves or in causing offence they have been freed of any contrived or pre-rehearsed modes of self presentation [Hypnosis] is a state in which a subject becomes hyper-responsive, through which an immediacy between thought and action is realised, resulting in an automatic response to satisfy the instruction given by the hypnotist."

Model Geoff Jeffrys said: "I didn't really get the sense that I was being photographed."

A section of the transcript between the hypnotist and the models read: "What I would like you to do now Geoff, is simply picture yourself, how you really see yourself - really be yourself. Be more yourself. How you really see yourself do you see yourself as a calm person as an angry person? How you really see yourself deep down, how you really see yourself. That's it. The true you. That's it. What I'm simply now is asking you to be the true you. Fantastic.''