"I want to take photographs that you can look at and actually feel the moment. Where you feel the presence of the people and the place. I'm interested in showing intimacy and in communicating those very unknowable, magical or ephemeral moments that we experience when alone or in the company of somebody that we trust very much. I came across images that were taken of me by a friend and I thought wow, that person really loved me! I could feel this in the photos. They have the aura of that. There is a look of ease and trust in my eyes that I want to bring into most of the images that I take. We live in an aggressive, power-driven world where there seems to be less and less room for community or unconditional love. That look of trust is a beautiful thing to behold. The challenge to me is to convey a palpable sense of intimacy. I know the mood of what I want to create and my models, who are all people that I respect, expand that and give it a truthfulness. My projects are as much about the experience and learning from it as they are about the image construction. I try and make my models feel as free and self-possessed as I was in the images that were taken of me, which is more difficult process than just telling someone what to do. But I find it incredibly meaningful. I've always had a very vivid awareness of my surroundings. I get caught up in little dreamy things. Some of the pictures that I make deal with that- with my desire to go slow, be simple and in touch with small details. There is a joy there that is difficult to articulate. I want to see how much of this I can bring into my photography, to show an interior life and not just create another slick surface for people to look at and get bored of in a week."

"The nudes officially began as a commission by The Standard Hotel who were publishing a magazine. The idea appealed to me because it was an opportunity to connect with a large audience. Although I love showing in art galleries, publishing is a more democratic form. It has the power to reach all types, which inspires me. I believe that strong work should be able to function anywhere and that the act of communicating to a large group is poignant. It raises the bar and that is empowering. I guess you could say that I'm nostalgic for nostalgia; for craftsmanship and naivety. For a time when people felt they could make a difference. My images are a way of tracing a line, however crooked, through the world of today. I grew up in Virginia (the daughter of a Cuban refugee and Colombian immigrant) and moved to New York City when I was seventeen to follow my dreams. I had no real plan, only that I had to be an artist. Being a photographer appealed to me because I'm someone who likes to hang back and watch things and get caught up in a mood. And when I realized that I could construct that mood, whatever I wanted it to be, it was an extremely liberating moment. In some ways my images are about showing what I want the world to look like and how I want it to be. I want to imbue them with an aura of nostalgia for a personal history if that makes any sense. It's not about a desire for a happier time and place. I mean there's some truth there that has to do with far more than just one specific moment. I recently shot an advertorial for Porsche in Japan that was exciting to do because I got to express a different side of myself. But really it is just a part of the same voice expressed differently. The images are about possession and how we can get really carried away and lose ourselves with spending if we're not careful. And how that's ultimately just to fill a void. So the girl is a zombie in the end. Parked up in front of her house, in the trunk of her Porsche. I don't know if that comes across at all in the narrative. [Laughs.] I hope so." Marlene Marino lives and works in New York City. Her clients include Purple, Dune, Self-Service, I-D, Esquire Japan, Brutus, Preen, Tokion and Dazed & Confused. You can see more work from Marlene Marino at: www.marlenemarino.net

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