During the pandemic, celebrity portrait photographer Brigitte Lacombe has been sheltering in place in Northern California. Accustomed to working on film sets, theater productions, fashion campaigns, and glossy magazine spreads, Lacombe has used the past few months to follow a more contemplative practice. “I am not taking portraits right now, but I still document what I see—landscapes, still lifes,” Lacombe explained in an email.

Brigitte Lacombe, “California, Pacific #2,” (60×80 cm). Courtesy of Absolut Art.

Lacombe is now offering four prints of her recent photographs for sale on Absolut Art, with proceeds benefiting Coalition for the Homeless. Though nearly devoid of human figures, the images are brought to life through the vivid textures of water, wood, and hair. Lacombe describes them as “taken from a distance, with a grainy quality, with a Blow-Up quality to them!” – a nod to the unnerving, unrelenting imagery of the 1966 Antonioni film. Lacombe’s views of the natural world provide a clear-eyed document of life in isolation, capturing both the feeling of distance and the sense of looking closer at our everyday surroundings and experience.

Brigitte Lacombe, “California, Pacific #1,” (60×80 cm). Courtesy of Absolut Art.

With her studio in New York closed, Lacombe’s projects have been “on hold, postponed, or canceled.” However, she has continued to find sources of inspiration. “All around me and around the world so many people have done extraordinary, selfless, compassionate, and generous work,” Lacombe said.

“I am still thinking about” the long-term impact of the pandemic on her practice, she added. “Certainly less speedy, less greedy, less traveling, and more long-term projects, I hope.”