Wait Until Dark by Chloe Meynier

Issue 101

Wait until Dark is a series of colored images shot from unexpected angles, resembling retro movie stills. The carefully staged scenes explore women’s roles, vulnerability, and question identity.

Each character is drawn from my personal interpretation of American mid-century life and addresses the complexities of the condition of women at that time period. By placing figures in familiar, yet unknown environments, the created scenes are quiet but psychologically compelling. The characters’ emotional states vary between reverie, longing, and self-confidence. The rare absence of characters prompts viewers to slow down to create their own personal narratives. The dramatic lighting emphasizes the emotional overtones of each character while leaving room for interpretation. The imaginary scenes involve characters and décor that are rooted, by appearance, in the mid-twentieth century. The series subtly hints at looming darkness and loneliness but mostly shows hope and self-confidence. The images are charged with an ambiguous narrative yet, allow viewers to stitch all the elements together to imagine what fate awaits these imagined characters. Overall, the work expresses a quiet melancholy and probes tensions between invisible challenges, intimacy, identity, and life. The themes evoked are timeless and universal and the work is an attempt to visually weave together strands of both American cultural history and personal interpretation of this history from a foreign point of view.

Chloe Meynier lives and works in San Francisco, California.
To view more of Chloe's work, please visit her website.

Theatre - Monte Rio, California, USA

Theatre - Monte Rio, California, USA

 
Pool – Montpeyroux, France

Pool – Montpeyroux, France

 
Bob’s Big Boy – Burbank, California, USA

Bob’s Big Boy – Burbank, California, USA

 
Motel Diner – Sun Valley, California, USA

Motel Diner – Sun Valley, California, USA

 
Bel Air – Palm Springs, California, USA

Bel Air – Palm Springs, California, USA

 
Motel Reception – Amboy, California, USA

Motel Reception – Amboy, California, USA

 
Living room – Beverly Hills, California, USA

Living room – Beverly Hills, California, USA

 
Motel – Palmsdale, California, USA

Motel – Palmsdale, California, USA

 
Bar – Chambon le Château, France

Bar – Chambon le Château, France

 
Drive In Theatre - Larkfield-Wikiup, California, USA

Drive In Theatre - Larkfield-Wikiup, California, USA

 
Night Bob’s Big Boy – Burbank, California, USA

Night Bob’s Big Boy – Burbank, California, USA

 
Munger Moss Motel – Lebanon, Missouri, USA

Munger Moss Motel – Lebanon, Missouri, USA

 
Bank of America, Palm Springs, California, CA

Bank of America, Palm Springs, California, CA

 
Eldorado – San Francisco, California, USA

Eldorado – San Francisco, California, USA

 
Blue Swallow Motel – Tucumcari, New Mexico, USA

Blue Swallow Motel – Tucumcari, New Mexico, USA