For her senior thesis project at the London College of Fashion, photographer and model Morwenna Lytton Cobbold decided to do something different than the typical, big student fashion show. She wanted to do something personal — something that would “strip back the big, fashion-shoot” side of the industry and just “explore where people came from.” So began a now-three-year-long project of photographing models at home with their mothers.
Cobbold, a 24-year-old former Burberry model, has photographed over 35 models — some green, some established — and their moms. Her work got widespread attention last year when selections were displayed for a breast-cancer-research charity exhibition called Models and Mothers, and published in a book titled Mother. And since then she’s continued the project, photographing more subjects and developing a growing series of intimate portraits that offer a window into interior life. “Models are always portrayed in a certain way,” she told the Cut. “I like the idea of stripping it back a little bit. It’s more about relationships … The thing that interested me isn’t that they’re models — it’s the family dynamic.
In honor of Mother’s Day, click through our slideshow to see highlights of Cobbold’s work, including some never-before-seen photographs.