A queer artist's journey from ballet to photography

Art has always guided me through my relationship with myself. As a child, I was somewhat eccentric. I was energetic and loud, sometimes sassy and rambunctious, yet I also had a softer, more affectionate, and observant side.

Finding beauty in the world around me, specifically in art, soothed me.

And when I started creating art, I could focus my energy on a specific goal.

There was a safety and deep satisfaction in creating something with my mind and body.

My first exposure to creating art was through dance. I spent countless hours of my childhood and adolescence in the ballet studio, training to be a classical ballerina.

There is a lot of queerness in the dance world. Still, classical ballet had two gendered roles: the hyper-feminine ballerina and her hyper-masculine supporter.

Every day I went to dance, I trained to present myself as a hyper-masculine symbol of strength.

While I loved creating this beautiful visual and ethereal art, years and years of conditioning my body to the male dancer's role prevented me from expressing myself in any other way.

I managed my struggle by focusing my energy and eccentricities on performing masculinity. It felt safe and often satisfying, but I knew it was not true to who I am.

In college, I dropped dance and gave photography a try.

I started with black-and-white film, quickly realizing that I could translate the form and beauty of dance into compelling images.

I was just beginning to find my voice as an artist.

I honed my ability to showcase the beauty of movement in still images but avoided addressing identity. The idea of letting go and embracing my queerness in my art felt impossible and terrifying.

My first chance to introduce my identity in my work was on set with Brandon Flynn.

Brandon was not just accepted in mainstream pop culture; he was admired.

I wanted to embrace my subject's eccentricities by having them dress how they want, wear whatever makeup they want, and move how they want.

I wanted to show that expressing themselves freely is not just okay. It's beautiful and celebrated.

By shooting mainstream editorials and photo projects with marginalized voices of the queer community, I was able to confidently and organically come into my own identity as a queer person.

You can have such a prominent voice in art without stepping in front of the camera.

Art can reflect the artist's inner experience, but creating art allowed me to embrace my queerness wholly.

The queer community and mainstream media were celebrating my subjects' authenticity in my images, and this reaction from the public brought me a sense of clarity, confidence, and liberation.

Once I found my groove as an artist, I wanted to expand into directing.

By combining my knowledge of dance movement and my interest in capturing genuine identities, I could extend my photographic work into art direction, set design, and storytelling on a larger scale.

As a ballet dancer, I was constricted by the very classical representations of gender. As a director, I sought to challenge them.

I began collaborating with queer choreographers to break down the barriers of classical gendered movement.

We worked to change the narrative of movement so we could dance more freely and honestly within our self-expression.

Along with choreography, I started bringing on glam teams that aimed to challenge the binary.

It's no secret that this industry is competitive, but one of my favorite parts of this career is finding new voices and collaborating to keep making innovative art.

In the queer community, we have to listen to each other and work to make sure that our voices are represented behind the scenes just as much as the wonderful people in the spotlight.

Creating art was the only path to becoming confident in my identity as a queer man.

Art is still my most authentic form of self-expression.

Reflecting on my childhood, I realize how art has always been a guiding force.

My identity has evolved through my artistic journey.

Embracing my identity has been a crucial part of my self-discovery.

My artistic growth parallels my personal development. I look forward to future creative projects and collaborations.

The support of the queer community has been invaluable.

Creating art continues to be my way of embracing and expressing my true self.

Jasper Soloff is a New York and Los Angeles-based photographer and director whose work has previously appeared in GQ, Vogue Magazine, Paper Magazine, Dazed, and Nylon Magazine, to name a few. He was also awarded VFILES Photographer of the Year in 2018. Soloff has directed global campaigns for Maybelline, Amazon Fashion, Fenty Beauty, and Dropbox. He has also directed music videos for Dove Cameron, Billy Porter, Tinashe, and Tate McRae, to name a few. In 2023, Jasper Soloff was named the new face of Canon's full-frame EOS R8 camera.

Arranged for Out by Nikki Aye

Voices is dedicated to featuring a wide range of inspiring personal stories and impactful opinions from the LGBTQ+ and Allied community. Visit out.com/submit to learn more about submission guidelines. We welcome your thoughts and feedback on any of our stories. Email us at voices@equalpride.com. Views expressed in Voices stories are those of the guest writers, columnists and editors, and do not directly represent the views of Out or our parent company, equalpride.