THE MATRI[X]ARCHY! Photography by Gemma Shepherd

A KALTBLUT exclusive womenswear editorial. Photography by Gemma Shepherd. A young photographer from Cape Town, South Africa. Model is Lisa Philander signed at FanJam Model Management. Styling by Imran Mohamed. The editorial features a range of brands from vintage designer labels to really incredible South African designers such as street wear label Young and Lazy and SELFI.

“I’ve always been really interested in art and fashion and I think photography was the natural merging of the two. The fashion photography industry is really saturated at the moment so something thats really important to me is authenticity. I always try to push my work further than the initial visual response, I try to capture a feeling and true sense of identity, in all its complexities. Identity is something I struggled with growing up – I think its the most integral but multifaceted part of being human – it is something I am still learning about myself. I’m always learning and always becoming. This story explores the oftentimes lonely journey of finding yourself and asserting your power as a woman in a society where it is easier to sit down and assimilate.” says Gemma Shepherd