Andreea Dorobăț is a talented Romanian photographer who mostly shoots monochrome photographs. Her series ‘Ielele’ is composed of black and white, poetic images that stimulate the imagination of the viewers.
The iele are feminine mythical creatures in Romanian mythology. There are several differing descriptions of their characteristics. Often they are described as faeries (zâne in Romanian), with great seductive power over men, with magic skills and attributes similar to nymphs. They mostly appear at night by moonlight, dancing naked, with their breasts almost covered by their disheveled hair, with bells on their ankles and carrying candles. The iele are not generally considered evil: they resort to revenge only when they are provoked, offended, seen while they dance, when people step on the trodden ground left behind by their dance, sleep under a tree which the Iele consider as their property, drink from the springs or wells used by them. Terrible punishments are inflicted upon the ones who refuse their invitation to dance, or the ones who mimic their movements.
Drawing inspiration from the Romanian myth of ielele, the photographs explore the ideas of seduction and alienation. They are telling the story of a young man who leaves his village and ventures in the wilderness where he sees three mysterious fairies dancing among the trees. Despite their beautiful appearance, the ladies are evil, insolent creatures, and he knows it, but his desire is too powerful to be restrained. After this intense experience, ielele vanish, and he has to pay the price for breaking away from traditional social norms. – Andreea
Models: Bianca Alexandra Sandu
Alexandra Manole
Batog Maria
Andrei Iulian Gheorghiță
Photo assistant: Ioana Samoilă
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