© Leigh Johnson 

Ahead of their exhibition at Paris Photo, Chloé is pleased to present the work of Leigh Johnson in the latest instalment of Chloé Curates, which sees the Maison and its creative director Gabriela Hearst spotlight the work of inspiring women artists.

The American photographer is drawn to the private lives of others. Whether that be two people in the street fighting or kissing, a father and daughter holding hands, or a discarded mattress on the pavement, when displayed publicly, her intimate observations become performance pieces. What is left behind or discarded has a history, and to focus on it is to focus on the lost or fleeting emotions which enlivened its narrative.

Johnson’s visual thesaurus is a mix between a diary of street life and the development of the series. With diverse material, honest framing and a fierce focus on the subject, Johnson binds together her works through the use of her poetry. Her photographic exhibitions have often taken the shape of a constellation of images arranged to follow a poem which is fragmented into a myriad of titles, one for each image. This amalgamation of words and images also reappears in some of the video works, merging narration and image collection into a mesmerising kaleidoscope for the senses.