Fine Art Photography and Ethereal Self Portraiture
By: Emeri Glen | Photos by: Ashlee Glen
Lillian Merritt works in avenues of redemption, but this may not be evident upon first glancing at her work. Filled with beautifully rich tones, breathtaking scenery, and packed with ample opportunity for different interpretations, Merritt’s fine art photography exists to create shared meaning.
Merritt grew up in the small military town of Eden, Oklahoma, with an older sister, two scientifically inclined parents, and a love for the arts. At the surprisingly young age of two, Merritt was already learning ballet at a studio, and it was at this establishment that she was first exposed to photography at the age of eleven.
For Merritt, photography just clicked.
“I was just like, this is it. This is what I [want to] do long-term,” she said.
Merritt began to explore the different avenues of photography and eventually landed on self-portraiture with a twist; she added the component of fine art-style post-editing to create something ethereal.
“I instantly fell into this other-worldly, fanciful style,” she remembered. “I’d never seen it anywhere before.”
Encouraged by her ballet studio’s photographer and an online teacher (who Merritt has since met and worked with), Merritt began to flourish in her newfound venture.
In an almost eerie way, Merritt’s pieces often have subtle connections to her childhood. One piece, “Jadis,” is based off of the popular Chronicles of Narnia book series. The picture portrays a white dress-clad Merritt trapped and suspended behind a fractured pane of ice. The whole piece is a chilling blue, much like the environment of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Merritt excitedly reminisced about how she grew up listening to her mother read the books in the series.
“The books are amazing. … Edmund is my favorite,” she said. “There is a special place in my heart for people who are like the black sheep, the people who need extra love and saving.”
Merritt and her family have lived in the Lynchburg area since 2015, and it was around this time that she truly began to invest in her natural talent.
By 2017, Merritt had gained the opportunity to send her art to a gallery in The Louvre. While she wasn’t able to travel with her art that year, she has since visited France, England, several states in the U.S. (her favorite is Montana), and several other countries. On each trip, she’s made sure to add to her photo reserves.
Merritt’s artistic process begins with coming up with a theme, envisioning what she wants to communicate through her art, packing up her tripod, camera, and any props that she may need, and setting off for her shoot location. After the shoot, which typically takes thirty minutes or so, Merritt heads back to her studio and resizes her photos to fit her standard template. Then comes the fun part, where Merritt plays with light and magic in the colors and landscape of her photos.
When she’s not creating with her camera and laptop, working her day job, seeking out new shoot locations, or choreographing for a production, Merritt is planning her next steps. Her love for “black sheep” and the Edmunds of the world has played a part in her vision for redeeming things very near and dear to her heart: Old abandoned homes.
“I’ve always loved the surrealness about abandoned properties,” she said. “I’ve always wanted to restore them. They need—they deserve—a second chance at life.”
Merritt hopes to start a nonprofit in the near future where she redeems these old homes (she’s already purchased her first and is ecstatic) and creates an environment for other artists to thrive and grow in. Its name? “Restory.”
To contact or learn more about Merritt and the stories that she tells through her work, visit her website (www.strengthofatlantis.com) or
Instagram account (@strengthofatlantis).
