What was the catalyst for your decision to become a photographer–the first thing that drew you in and then after that what made you fall in love with it?

Rochelle Brock: I went to a music and arts high school in Brooklyn and I had a lot of friends who were producers and rappers. So initially, I wanted to be a concert photographer.

Being in high school during the Tumblr era, I started to get into fashion. But I wasn’t seeing women with darker skin and when I was seeing plus size women, I wasn't seeing ones with my body shape. 

It made me want to be a photographer, and it made me want to focus more. In tandem with going to concerts (shout out to mom for letting me explore New York City late night) and using photography as the way to find myself. 

What does it mean for you to be creating an archive of Blackness and queerness and marginalized bodies?

I didn't realize I was creating an archive of any of these things till I started putting my work together and getting more organized.I realized Realizing that I’ve created something that is so meaningful that has helped so many people. It wasn't intentional but throughout the years, it’s become intentional. 

What kinds of things, media or non-media, do you draw inspiration from? 

Right now, I feel like I draw a lot of inspiration from my peers and my surroundings. I look at photo books and people's work that I love that are online. 

There's a lot of really amazing art that can be made in community.

Exactly! Even just planting the seed of the idea can turn into something completely different than you even thought about before.

Who are some visual artists working today that you really admire?

I really love Myesha Evon Gardner. I think they're amazing. I love Adrienne Raquel, her work is just gorgeous. McKenzie Thompson is a photographer who does a lot of fun commercials. I love to see what they're doing and how they’re navigating being a commercial photographer, but still playing around. And Jade Purple Brown. They aren't a photographer, but I love their digital art.

Do you think the fashion and advertising industries have an obligation to be more inclusive when they're hiring models? Have you noticed any progress?

Yes, I think they do have a duty, especially when it comes to fashion. There's so many people who look like your target audience that you're excluding. They have a duty to stop excluding a whole sector of people simply based on body size. Before COVID, I feel like plus fashion and plus-sized models were on the rise. Between 2016 and 2019, you had many different brands trying to garner this new audience and everyone was being body positive, and then 2020 happened and it's like you can't even find a size above 24 in stores from the same companies. There are so many collections that have been taken out of production that were really awesome and featured plus-size people. In terms of the modeling industry, it’s very weird right now. I take primarily pictures of plus models and I hear some of my friends talk about how if they’re above a size 18, they are hardly working. 

I think we've gotten out of it before so I feel like we can get out of it again. 

I'm curious about your AI work, because I know that especially among visual artists, there's this idea that the machines are coming for everyone’s job – what do you think about that, and what inspired you to start creating AI work?

One night at 3 AM, I was on the phone with my friend trying to figure out how to make 3D characters. I'm a huge gamer. I love The Sims. So I initially wanted to learn how to make clothes for The Sims. I was looking it up on TikTok and I saw someone using Midjourney. I started playing around with it and I got really excited by it. It truly started as something fun; it still is, it's not really something that I monetize. I wanted to create pictures at a time where I wasn't really getting a lot of work, but I still wanted to be creative. So at first I was just like, let me make mock photoshoots and see how I can teach this AI to spit out an image that looks like something that I would take. Then I made these mermaids that went viral and it just had so much backlash. I was like, do y'all even hate fake fat people? 

AI is what it is. I'm cautious of it, but I'm not afraid of it. I’d rather learn the program, versus being scared of it and not utilizing it. 

How would you say photography has affected your relationship with your body?

I work really well with people who are uncomfortable in front of the camera because I'm a person who's uncomfortable in front of the camera.

“I’ve been photographed by people who didn’t see my beauty, and I felt that, and I never want to be a photographer who makes people feel like that.”

I see the beauty in every single person that I'm sitting across from. I think it really helped me see myself honestly.

What are three prominent things you do to take care of yourself?

I take breaks from the internet, and even if it's not completely off the internet, I'll take breaks from Instagram. Instagram sometimes, for me personally, can be an enemy of progress, even though it holds a lot of inspiration for me.

I love reading. I recently got into audiobooks. I can get very much stuck being in the house and hermit-ing sometimes, so getting some sunshine and vitamin D and going out and really leaning into my community has been helpful.

What are you reading right now?

Right now, The Gilded Ones #3 by Namina Forna. It's like a dystopian afro-futurism folklore type fantasy.

View more of Rochelle Brock’s work here.