"It's full speed or nothing", that's the name of her blog and definitely a good title for what you can expect about her. The russian model and photographer Ira Chernova is an example of a new generation of strong women, determined and realistic,for whom dreams are just goals to achieve. Having modeled for Diesel and with a personality that transcends gender, Ira has generated a career in the world of photography, a world where dream and fiction come together to play with reality.
Somehow you do not choose to be an artist. It's the result of a need, a vortex of convulsive emotions that are begging to be heard, transformed and transmitted. That might have been Ira's case; wrapped in her engineering studies, the romantic ideal to create and photograph was never one of her goals. But the seed was there. Ira Chernova has a lot to convey to the world and her vision behind the camera, as well as her relationship with the Polaroid format, equals her stunning beauty in person. The need to understand different cultures and the importance of getting to know oneself when confronting a new challenge did the rest .We met for a coffee in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, with the desire to discover the secrets of her delicate and magical photography.
What is your background?
I was born and raised in Moscow. I was studying to become an engineer before I came to discover photography, I travelled around Europe during 3 years before my start my next life chapter in NYC.
What inspired you to start taking photos and how did you start?
I was in my second year at University when I realised I wasn't going to be able to keep up with a job which made me spend so much time inside an office. It was time to find out what I wanted to do with my life and, so it happened, that my parents had a small collection of film cameras. That' s how it started!
Besides, there's your modeling career. Do you find the fact of being on both sides of the camera an inspiring exercise?
Yes, multitasking is good. I like to constantly switch in between of things I'm doing, freshens up your vision in some ways.
You have worked with some very well-known photographers , tell us about your experience. Have you learnt from them? What to do and what not to do?
Yes, in the past year I have had the honor of working with Inez & Vinoodh, Terry Richardson, Mark Abrahams... along with some other great masterminds. With them I was able to see how easily some people work.I learnt that more time isn't always better, as once you have the required photo it doesn't matter if it took one minute or a whole hour.
Do you think the fact that you are a woman working in this industry determines your options or, on the contrary, enriches your vision?
Not really, i don't feel like that. Personally, I think women are way too emotional and often put other things that (to me) matter less, before actual creative work. Yes, having to struggle and suffer a little can help us stimulate our inspiration and creativity, but what's most important, is to establish one's priorities from the beginning.
Tell us about your future goals.
More work. I want to be constantly expanding my world of creative connections,get to travel a little in order to change perspectives, take more jobs so I don't have to be worrying about the financial aspects of life.Besides, I also have some ideas for my polaroid work such as manual postproduction and collages.
