Eva Rossie picked up her camera again in 2019, and ever since, she’s been using photography to explore the subjects closest to her chest. Through her art, she expresses her perspective on human connections, the constraints society places on women, the aging body, and even the often-hidden sides of men.

Rossie studied photography at the Academy of Fine Arts in Anderlecht and art history at the University of Ghent. Her career as a professional model has also taken her around the world. These experiences have given her an eye for beauty, a natural ability to connect with people, and a deep understanding of what it’s like to be subjected to the camera’s lens.

Books: what lies beyond the expected?

Her first book, Les (Dés)Habilleuses, focuses on how women have been portrayed throughout history. Much of her critique targets society’s perception of aging women – as if they become invisible once they are no longer fertile. Rossie challenges this unjust yet pervasive viewpoint, which reduces women to either objects of desire or figures to be overlooked. She drew inspiration from thinkers like Laura Mulvey, who argued in Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema that film often caters to visual and erotic pleasure from a male perspective. In contrast, Rossie set out to explore how women can be seen through her own female gaze.

In her second book, Unfolded, Rossie turned her lens toward men. What kind of image emerges when men are viewed through the female gaze? This project isn’t about seeking revenge on the patriarchy but rather exploring the ways it has harmed men as well. With a playful approach, Rossie looks beyond traditional depictions of masculinity, asking: Who are men when no one is watching?

(Self)portraits

A significant part of Rossie’s personal work revolves around self-portraiture. The various forms and moods she captures in her own image serve as a way to process trauma – a means of reclaiming her multifaceted identity: as a woman, an aging body, a mother, an artist, a sexual being, and a person in need of understanding and comfort. In her own manner, she reveals how she embodies all these aspects simultaneously. Rather than feeling fragmented, her art allows her to experience a sense of wholeness within her complexity.

At the same time, Rossie seeks to help others feel that same sense of completeness by portraying them as well. There’s a profound warmth in the connections she forms, one that’s worth the world. In doing so, she creates a space where imperfections don’t exist. Knowing all too well how it feels to be vulnerable, Rossie finds beauty and solace within it – and invites others to do the same.

Upcoming

Rossie’s upcoming project centers on the aftermath of irreversible loss. How do you express an overwhelming zest for life in the wake of disruption? She explores ways to continue manifesting the self after devastation, asking: Do any traces of what was lost remain within our own bodies?

Written by Yasmin Van ‘tveld