We were delighted that, once again, Alex Amengual has been back to Mustique - it is always a pleasure to see him and catch up with his news!
We asked him some questions that we really wanted to know the answers to about his relationship with Mustique and thought that you would all be as fascinated as we were by his responses:
Q: How did you first find yourself on Mustique?
A: It was a huge surprise when Knight Frank gave me my first Caribbean shoot there in 2014 for some villas that were on sale.
We would like to add this from Alex's own website, which describes better than anyone else ever could, just why Knight Frank asked him to photograph those villas:
"Many just see a structure. But there is so much more. More than bricks and mortar. More than an architect’s design. More than a box for containing life. A living space. It does not just contain life. It is alive.
A living space has its own personality. An energy, comprised of many layers. Slowly and subtly, just as you transform the walls of your living space, you are also being transformed. Molded.
The most compelling portrait is that which draws out and exposes traits hidden within the sitter. A connection is created. Viewer, artist and subject are coupled by something unseen, yet clearly perceived. This is what I strive towards when photographing Living Spaces.
With every shoot, I set out to capture more than a facade. I want to capture a soul."
(Hummingbird photographed by Amengual.com)
Q: What is it about Mustique that brings you back again and again?
A: I was born in a Mediterranean island and I'm amazed that despite the differences, I also feel very at home in Mustique. I love the diversity of architecture, the open nature of the living spaces and how they integrate with exteriors, and the nature.
Q: Do you have a favourite place on the island to photograph?
A: My favourite place is wherever I am at the moment - I'm always discovering new locations and moods and I love every one of them! I do find myself often in Lagoon Bay though.
(Kim at Lagoon Bay photographed by Amengual.com)
Q: What are your future plans?
A: Despite 12 trips over the last 7 years, I've always been short of time and focused on commercial work, so I have now started to visit at a personal level so I can spend more time working on my own photography and my own pace and slowly build a body of work that portrays the love and wonder I feel for this unique part of the world. I also want to explore more of the Grenadines with the view of producing a book of images of these amazing islands like I am already doing for my own islands in Spain.
Well, that is a very exciting prospect! We look forward to seeing you soon on Mustique and to seeing your work in progress, if we are allowed....
In the meantime, this is a sneak preview from a shoot with Alex last month with one of Lotty's hotly anticipated new prints, due for release this Autumn:
(Jeanette at Cotton House photographed by Amengual.com)
Many thanks for sharing your answers with us all, Alex!
(Alex at Basil's Bar photographed by Lotty B)
