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Bubblegum: Photographs that celebrate the freedom, innocence and joy of youth

London-based photographer Emily Stein's deceptively simple photographs of children blowing bubblegum on beaches around the world are a compelling portrait of the freedom, innocence and joy of youth.

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All images via Hoxton Mini Press

All images via Hoxton Mini Press

Entitled Bubblegum, Emily started taking portraits of children and teenagers on a beach in New York State in the summer of 2013. Explaining her thinking behind the project, she said: "The transience of youth has always been a popular theme in the history of western painting. In the symbolic language of this tradition, bubbles represent the transience of life.

"The Bubblegum series responds to this by using bubblegum as a practical way of drawing a fabulously diverse range of facial expressions from its young subjects. In doing so, the series reminds us that youth is not only to be celebrated as something brief but to be enjoyed for its spontaneity and individuality."

Emily gets hugely excited about light, tone and colour in photography and has always been drawn to the boundless energy and honesty of children. She currently photographs people of all ages, often for commercial clients such as MTV, Vice and Puma.

For more information about Emily and her work, visit www.emilystein.co.uk. You might also be happy to know that her series will be published in a new book, coming soon courtesy of Hoxton Mini Press.

Girl with reddish-brown hair and freckles blowing a pink bubble against a blue sky
Young person blowing a bubble of bubblegum against a blue sky, from Emily Stein's Bubblegum series
Young person wearing orange-tinted sunglasses blowing pink bubblegum against a blue sky and sea backdrop
Young person with blonde hair blowing a pink bubble against a clear blue sky
Young person with long brown hair blowing a bubble against a clear blue sky, mouth open wide with a joyful expression
Young person with dark wavy hair blowing a large pink bubble against a clear blue sky
Young person with brown hair blowing a pink bubble against a blue sky, with a blurred natural background
Close-up of a young person's face blowing a pink bubblegum bubble, part of Emily Stein's Bubblegum photography series
Young person with blonde hair blowing bubblegum against a clear blue sky, smiling with eyes closed
Young girl in profile blowing bubblegum against a blue sky with wispy clouds
Young person blowing a pink bubble against a beach backdrop, wearing a delicate pendant necklace
Young person with eyes closed blowing a large bubble of pink gum against a clear blue sky, wearing a blue and green patterned garment
Shirtless boy in profile against a clear blue sky, blowing a large bubble of gum with his eyes closed
Close-up of a young person's face in profile blowing a pink bubble, with long brown hair visible against natural daylight
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