Mallory Brooks creates photographic art that exists at the intersection of intention and chance.

Working exclusively with film, Brooks employs experimental analog techniques—film soup, multiple exposure, lens distortion, custom filters, and color overlays—to transform traditional photography into visually arresting contemporary art. Every effect is achieved in-camera or during development. No AI. No Photoshop. No post-production manipulation.

Her process rejects both conventional photographic rules and digital possibilities, instead using film's physical and chemical nature as creative mediums themselves. The result: work that cannot be replicated, images born from controlled chaos that yield explosive colors, dream-like textures, and visual depth impossible to achieve through conventional means.

Based in Atlanta and inspired by global travel, Brooks creates vibrant work for collectors building meaningful acquisitions and designers seeking statement pieces for luxury projects.

Uncompromising Curiosity

Brooks' creative process begins with extensive field work—hours spent observing subjects, searching for angles that reveal potential rather than simply documenting what exists. She sees beyond the frame, imagining transformations that can only emerge through experimental intervention.

Then comes the experimentation. Film soup—submerging exposed negatives in chemical baths of boiling water, salt, wine, matcha, flowers. Multiple exposures layering scenes into singular compositions. Lens distortion bending light and perspective. Custom filters creating color shifts and optical effects. Each technique pushes film to its limits.

Many frames don't survive the process. The ones that do reveal something impossible to achieve through conventional means.

This isn't nostalgia for analog processes. It's using film's physical and chemical properties as creative forces—turning what photographers are taught to avoid into the very source of innovation.

Years of experimentation have given Brooks something rare: the ability to guide chaos without taming it, to work with unpredictability as a collaborator rather than fighting against it. Every effect is intentional. Every result is unrepeatable.

Contemporary Photographic Art

Brooks' work explores diverse subjects through experimental analog techniques—palm-lined coasts, vibrant urban scenes, architectural details, abstract coastal studies. Her collections transform recognizable imagery into contemporary art that commands attention while maintaining sophistication.

Coastal Alchemy
Ocean scenes, beach landscapes, and natural environments reimagined through chemical intervention and multiple exposure.

Urban Vibrance
Neon-lit cityscapes, architectural elements, and metropolitan energy captured and transformed through experimental processes.

Palm Abstractions
Tropical subjects pushed beyond representation—color-saturated, abstracted forms that retain just enough recognition to anchor the viewer.

Light & Color Studies
Pure explorations of how experimental techniques create unexpected visual phenomena—the process itself becomes the subject.

Each collection bridges contemporary art and photographic tradition—visually arresting pieces grounded in technical mastery and creative vision.

Established Recognition

Brooks' experimental approach has earned recognition in both photographic and fine art contexts.

  • Featured: Professional Photographer Magazine, WABE Atlanta "City Lights with Lois Reitzes"
  • Named: Analog Forever Magazine's "16 Film Soup Photographers You Need to Know" (2023)
  • Exhibited: Experimental Photo Festival (Barcelona, Spain), Atlanta Photography Group, Kai Lin Art, Cat Eye Creative

Her work is regularly shown at premier juried art festivals across the Southeast, where it appeals to collectors seeking what cannot be found elsewhere and designers creating distinctive interiors.

From Advertising to Art

Originally from Tallahassee, Florida, Brooks developed her artistic eye through solo travel—exploring cultures and landscapes while working in advertising. Those early experiences sparked an interest in finding extraordinary perspectives in ordinary scenes and seeing beyond what's immediately visible.

In 2020, she transitioned from advertising to pursue photography full-time—bringing a creative director's strategic vision to her artistic practice. Her evolution toward experimental photography came from a desire to push beyond what traditional or digital photography could achieve—to create images that couldn't exist any other way.

Brooks develops and scans all film personally at her Atlanta studio, maintaining complete creative control from capture through final print. This hands-on approach ensures that every piece reflects her artistic vision without compromise.

Investment & Collaboration

Brooks works directly with collectors and designers, offering both limited edition prints from existing work and custom commissions.

For Collectors:
Each piece originates from experimental processes that cannot be precisely duplicated—chemical reactions, multiple exposures, in-camera manipulations that create effects specific to that single moment. While prints can be made from the original negative, the process itself is unrepeatable. Brooks offers limited edition prints, ensuring genuine scarcity beyond the inherent uniqueness of the experimental process.

For Design Professionals:
Interior designers working on luxury residential, hospitality, and commercial projects turn to Brooks' work when their vision demands art that makes a statement—pieces their clients can't find anywhere else. Her experimental photography brings conversation-starting visual energy to sophisticated spaces: bold color and innovative technique that commands attention while maintaining the refinement high-end projects require.

Brooks offers flexible materiality—standard prints, metal, wall murals, or custom installations—and professional collaboration with designers who understand art's role in defining a space.

Acquisition

Works available for purchase or custom commission. Limited editions and bespoke installations for residential and commercial projects. Trade terms available for design professionals.

Contact Mallory