Everything You Need To Know About Paul Bellaart Photography

Dutch Photographer Paul Bellaart studied at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague, but dropped out to pursue his career in 1995 and from this point on he began traveling for his work and acquired great success. His work varies in subject matter from portraiture and fashion to lifestyle. Bellaart claims to find inspiration for his work in real people, inspiring locations, and fortuitous, unplanned happenings. He has worked with a variety of editorial and commercial clients, for top brands in the fashion industry, including Burberry, Hermes and Levi’s, with his images being featured in esteemed publications such as Elle, Marie Claire, Vogue and Vanity Fair.

PaulBellaart has an acute sense for capturing genuinity when photographing his subjects. He has a unique point of view when in pursuit of sensuality by creating a sense of bareness and capturing natural beauty, by stripping his compositions down. He brings a distinctive  approach to female intimacy, with a sense of ease and lightness. An example of this can be seen here, in his work titled Legs Up. This image evokes a strong sensuality yet remains playful and mysterious. The obscured seduction of the image excites the viewer's imagination and teases their senses. It was published in the series "A Love Story" for Vogue The Book in Summer 2016.

Bellaart’s work is distinct in its capability to be both seductive yet innocent; he explores the boundaries of what society deems beautiful by capturing the innate childish curiosity within us all through his subjects. In an image published in Playboy Netherlands on January 1st, 2010, which can be seen here, Bellaart demonstrates this. The image is both sexy and childlike, it examines youthful playfulness and awakens the spontaneous and carefree child that rests within all of us. Bellaart manages to capture the infinite joy of running and playing naked on a spotless beach while also bringing forth coming of age.

Bellaart has participated in the creation of the photography books “#SENDNUDES” and “MOAM - contemporary fashion & arts in amsterdam.” The book “#SENDNUDES” is a carefully curated collection of nude photography created in collaboration with Iman Whitfield, MENDO. It is a selection of nude imagery taken and submitted by a variety of photographers worldwide. The photographers represented in the book were asked to choose “their favorite shots of female sensuality and intimacy.”(Amazon). Esteemed photographers were featured, such as Dennis Swiatkowski, Fauve Bouwman, and Paul Bellaart. This resulted in a book of intimate imagery curated from a female’s perspective. It celebrates erotosism and diversity, capturing a wide array of feminine beauty. As innate in most of Bellaart’s work the distinctive compilation of images within this book tantalize the senses, dancing between that which is revealed and obstructed.