Ashley Chappell’s images sit at the intersection of fine art and fashion. Her portraits revel in the interplay of light, line, texture and form – offering a painterly approach to photography. Intimate close-ups draw attention to small details: bright, metallic eye makeup or circles traced onto skin. Elsewhere, subjects are shown in nature – surrounded by balloons or dancing underneath sun-dappled fabrics. Studio shots, meanwhile, make masterful use of colour-blocking. There’s a cinematic quality throughout, and a notable sense of narrative. Chappell draws inspiration from personal history, as well as ancestral memory and myth, to tell visual stories, which “honour Black presence as layered, sacred and expansive.” Her journey into photography, she explains, is “a tale of resilience and pursuing dreams.” After leaving nursing a decade ago due to lupus, Chappell has since found solace and purpose behind the camera. ashley-chappell.com | @flxashstudios

All images: Image courtesy of Ashley Chappell.