Vee Speers

1. Vee Speers
By Beth Self

2. Some of Vee Speers Photographs
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3. Vee Speers
Vee Speers was born in 1962 in Australia but has lived in Paris since 1990. She became well known
for her unusual portraits. She studied art and photography for QCA in Brisbane. After that she worked
for ABC Television in Sydney during the 1980s.
Starting with her daughter, Vee photographed a series of interesting shots that show the journey from
childhood into adulthood that grabbed international attention. The Birthday Party series idea
appeared at her daughters birthday party. Many of the children in this series are holding objects,
these may symbolise their characters or Vee’s character. Her photographs sell for thousands of
pounds in different galleries.
Vee Speers’ Work:
•Thirteen
•Immortal
•The Birthday Party
•Parisians
•Bordello

4. #52 Bordello
FACTUAL: This photograph
was taken by Vee Speers as
part of the Bordello series, a
black and white set of
photographs.
The CONTEXT: This
photographs fits in with its
own series and the Parisians
because of the picture being
black and white. By the way
the model is positioned it
puts emphasis on her
shoulder blade it also means
the viewer is interested in the
umbrella which she is
graciously leaning on.
TECHNICAL: I think this
AESTHETIC: I really like this photograph, I think it will be appealing to
both sexes because it is an attractive picture with an obvious and engaging
focal point. I like the patterns on the umbrella and the fact that Vee has
included the lines on the umbrella which lead into the pale white model. I
think black and white is the best choice for this photograph because she is
whiter than her surroundings making her the centre of attention.
photograph may have been
taken with a black and white
film camera because it
doesn’t look as sharp as
some of Vee’s other shots. I
definitely think lighting was
used because the umbrella
looks faded at the bottom.

5. #1 Parisians
FACTUAL: This photograph was taken by Vee
Speers and is the first in the Parisians series of a
women called Amanda.
The CONTEXT: This series is based on the
“Parisians”, the people in this series were different
and eccentric people by the looks of them. They
create interesting pictures proving that everyone is
different.
TECHINICAL: This photograph could either have
been taken with a black and white film camera or
with a DSLR camera along with specific lighting
against a black studio wall. But I think a DSLR
camera will have been used for this photograph
because it is fairly recent and Vee would have
wanted the best picture, so by taking it in colour she
could then chose between that or the black and white
edited version.
AESTHETIC: I really like this photograph due to
the varied and exciting tattoos on Amanda’s body
which are facing the camera. I think these tattoos are
very appealing and with the fish sticking out of her
hair it creates the fish theme. Amanda is obviously
the focal point and this means the viewer can admire
her without anything else distracting them.

6. #30 The Birthday Party
FACTUAL: This unusual and interesting photograph
was taken by Vee Speers. This is the 30 th picture out
of 49 in this series.
The CONTEXT: This photograph fits with the
Birthday Party series but because of what she is
wearing I would of thought it would be part of my
favourite series, the Thirteen series. The young girl in
this photograph blends into the white background so
the dead rabbit she is clutching stands out against the
rest of this, in my opinion, great photograph.
TECHNICAL: Like Vee’s other photographs I think
this would have been taken with a DSLR Camera. I
think to make her dress look whiter than it actually is
the light would be shining on it. I am pretty sure this
photo will have been taken in a studio but it may have
been taken in Vee’s house against a white wall.
AESTHETIC: I really like this photograph because
the contrast between the dark rabbit and the white girl
create an eye-catching effect. Her expression conveys
an eerie mood, this may also be because she is
carrying a dead rabbit. I like the fact that she is holding
the rabbit and the fact that she looks quite sad and
unhappy because of it.

7. #16 The Birthday Party
FACTUAL: This picture was taken by Vee
Speers, inspired by the birthday party that her
own daughter had. This is the 16th picture in the
series.
The CONTEXT: This photograph fits in with a
lot of Vee’s other work, mainly with her Birthday
Party series and her Thirteen series because
they are all against white backgrounds with the
children wearing interesting outfits.
TECHNICAL: I think this camera would have
been taken on a DSLR camera to get the
sharpness, I think the lighting will have been
positioned next to and above the child. I think this
because of the light reflecting off the object she’s
holding and off her dress.
AESTHETIC: I like the simplicity of this
photograph and the fact that the girl is holding
this particular object which is simple yet effective.
I like this style of dress because it makes her
look quite small and to show that she is just a
child. I like her eccentric hairstyle, Vee Speers
was going for the Marge Simpson hairstyle. The
girls cheek bone is really prominent which gives
her face a nice appealing shape.

8. #3 Immortal
FACTUAL: This photograph
was taken by Vee Speers. This
is one of the few photographs
that is landscape and not
portrait.
The CONTEXT: This
photograph is the third in the
immortal series, this set of
photographs has meaningful and
dangerous backgrounds which
may symbolise the persons life. I
think there will be a powerful
story behind this particular
photograph.
TECHNICAL: I think this
AESTHETIC: I think this photograph is capturing the slave trade, the
event which took many black people away from their homes and ruined
their lives, and in this case I think this photograph is showing her home
being destroyed right behind her. We can’t really see her hands but they
may be tied together, ready for her to be taken away. For me and I think
many other viewers this is an emotional picture, reminding us of the
dark days where racism took over.
photograph will have been taken
with a DSLR camera against a
studio screen, I think the
background will have been
added on an advanced editing
software. I think some lighting
will have been placed around the
model as you can see the light
reflecting of her skin.

9. #10 Thirteen
FACTUAL: This photograph is the 10th in the
Thirteen series and was taken by the Australian
portrait photographer, Vee Speers.
The CONTEXT: The girl in this photograph is
facing a white background which looks the same
texture as the bottom half of her stunning dress.
Vee uses a white background in many of her
photographs and unlike this picture creates
contrast. But I still think the girl stands out from
her surroundings.
TECHNICAL: I think this photograph will have
been taken with a DSLR because it looks like
quite a recent picture. I also think this will have
been taken in a studio, many of Vee’s
photographs look like they have been taken in a
studio which I am not so fond of, so when I take a
picture inspired by Vee I may take my model
outside to change it around.
AESTHETIC: Personally, apart from it being
against an artificial background I love this
photograph. I adore the models dress and the
flowers which fall around her shoulders. Her
facing the wall may be symbolising that she has
no where to go and I like the fact that you can only
see the back of her.

10. This is Vee Speers, the famous
photographer from Australia. Her
unusual photos grabbed lots of
attention and they are now selling for
thousands of pounds.
“I don’t like to follow the crowd.
I like to seduce, with images that are
at once disturbing and beautiful,
but leaving a space for the viewer to
enter my world.
My portraits combine elements which
evoke conflicting
emotions that can surprise the
viewer, telling a story that is
somewhere
between fantasy and reality, the
obvious and the unexpected.”
I really like this quote because I
think it describes her theme of
photographs very well and how
the viewer sees and interprets
the picture.
She considers her photos well,
we know this because she
wants her photographs to tell a
story. She says herself her
pictures are disturbing but
beautiful.

11. I used the CV page on Vee Speer’s
website to try and figure out the date in
which she published her photographs. I
put them in chronological order by
looking at these dates. In 2002 it talks
about the Bordello series, so I put this
first because it is the oldest and then
later on at the top of the list it talks about
the Thirteen series so I put this last. The
second oldest series by looking at this is
the Parisians then the Birthday Party
and then the Immortal series. This page
was very helpful to me in trying to figure
out the chronological order of her
photography.