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For years, photographer Ewan Phelan and his wife Brianna have documented some of the most striking and intimate moments between couples in their bedrooms.
The pair are traveling educators and photographers, specifically experts on boudoir photography, and their work has taken them around the world. They also regularly teach at international conferences and together have made Rangefinder Magazine's list of the Top 10 Educators To Watch.
Together, the pair's work explores the idea that nudity and sexuality are not shameful parts of the human experience. We should always be proud of who we are and our capacity to share intimacy with others -- and it shouldn't necessarily be something that needs to be hidden away from the public eye.
Now, Ewan Phelan is sharing some of these boudoir images with The Huffington Post. These are not "just pretty photos," Phelan told The Huffington Post. "They are an extension of the individual in them, and of myself." The photographer said viewers "should walk away feeling something from these images -- good or bad." Check out the photos and a full interview with Phelan below.
"Like all of my work, I approach shoots with major themes in mind that I want to get across to the viewer, and to my clients who are in the photos," Phelan told The Huffington Post. "I want to be able to show the viewer how I see the world. I want to show the true rawness of emotion, vulnerability and strength that is found in our sexuality. And, specifically for couples, I want to be able to show the true connection that exists between them in those intimate moments."
"The motto of my work is either love it or hate it -- just don’t only like it," Phelan continued. "I want to confront the viewer and make them ask themselves: What it is about my work that makes them feel uncomfortable. What makes them uncomfortable about sexuality? I want them to ask themselves why are they afraid of accepting such an important part of what makes them who they are. Our sexuality makes up a huge part of who we are as a species and as an individual. No one should be ashamed of it. Nudity and sexuality are not things that need to be hidden behind closed doors, ashamed of, or not talked about. If it became common conversation, not taboo, then maybe we could do a better job for the next generation coming up than was ever done for us."
"I hope that for those who feel like they have to hide who they are, or who have had part of themselves suppressed for whatever reason, will find the strength in seeing these photos -- LBGT or straight," Phelan also stated. "That they should not be afraid to express themselves as sexual beings. There is empowerment through doing so, not shame. I want these individuals to see that they are not alone and that those who try to shame people for the expression of their sexuality are on the wrong side of history. I hope that these photos will bring people together to see that love and passion is all the same between those who share it with each other. I want viewers to be drawn into my world, see it the way I do and to be comforted or confronted with it. They should walk away feeling something from these images -- good or bad. These are not just pretty photos. They are an extension of the individuals in them, and of myself."
Want to see more from Phelan? Check out the photographer's Instagram here or his wife, Brianna Phelan's, here. You can see more of their work at Do More Wear Less or Last Forty Percent.