The Collins Concise Dictionary in my local library defines an ‘Essex Girl’ as “a young working-class woman from the Essex area, typically considered as being unintelligent, materialistic, devoid of taste, and sexually promiscuous.” . Other dictionaries there have similar definitions. It’s a stereotype based on a mixed bias of gender, social class, and geography, dating from the early 90s and more recently perpetuated by the TV series ‘The Only Way Is Essex’ (TOWIE).
As a lifelong Essex resident with a working-class background, I am challenging this pejorative, stereotypical portrayal with this ongoing series of portraits of real ‘Essex Girls’. I’m a father to two young daughters, and wonder whether the stereotype will still persist by the time they become adults.
Each portrait is a collaboration and I encourage suggestions on location such as poses and dress, so that sitters are projected in the way that they would like to be portrayed. All participants have a connection to Essex, and I aim to include a diverse range of backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, body shapes, sexualities and geographical locations.
Mark Massey is mostly self-taught, focusing on documentary and portraiture with an element of street photography. He is interested in photography as ‘social documentary’ - observing and discovering everyday places, and the interaction between people and the environment. His community is also important to him, so local issues have formed the focus of several personal projects he has worked on or are currently in progress.