PhotographerThurstan Reddingwas working primarily as a fashion photographer when he had two memorable encounters with cosplayers in the wild.
For the first time, the folks dressed in costumes of characters from popular culture came on his radar.
Previously, he was aware of the practice, but he hadnt ever fully engaged with it.
Kids of Cosplayhas a different take on the hobby than we are used to.
Typically, cosplay costumes are reserved for comic conventionsthe places in which many cosplayers get their start.
But Redding decided to change the context of where we see these folks.
Their ingenuity is admired outside of convention centers and in the everyday world.
It also functions as a way to pay homage to the incredible costumes.
The results tell a story while putting cosplay front and center.
Kids of Cosplayis now available for preorder on the Volume website.
Scroll down to read his exclusive interview with My Modern Met.
In his seriesKids of Cosplay, photographer Thurstan Redding snaps portraits of cosplayers in everyday tweaks.
When did you first become interested in cosplay?
How didKids of Cosplaycome to be?
Ive always known that I wanted to work on a bookever since starting photography.
I found the idea of doing something almost like a sociological study very appealing.
What kind of research and preparation went into the book?
What interests you, in general, about cosplay?
What inspired this choice?
What do you intend for readers to take away fromKids of Cosplay?
Is there a particular message you hope it inspires?
Its interesting because the main response has really been a sense of melancholia.
It really is a pure form of escapism.
What can non-cosplayers learn from those who dress up?
That we are never too old to still be having fun.
And finally, what are you working on now?
Anything exciting you might tell us about?
Kids of Cosplaywill be released later this year by Volume.
Related Articles:
