Artistic Portraits in Stockholm’s Subway: A Theater Coach at Solna Strand and Västra Skogen

It was in Stockholm that I met Daria, a deeply creative person with years of experience in theater coaching. While working on the concept for her photo shoot, I kept coming back to one setting: Stockholm’s subway, known as one of the largest underground art galleries in the world. Nearly every station holds art of its own—sculptures, mosaics, paintings, installations, museum exhibits. Placing a theatrical personality in that setting felt right. It was a stage already built, waiting for her to express and shine.

I scouted many stations and landed on two whose stories resonated with me. Solna Strand became the primary location. Deep underground, in a country that is often gloomy and overcast, you find bright blue sky and dreamy clouds painted onto bold geometric shapes. That contradiction stayed with me. It connected to a philosophy I follow through my life: per aspera ad astra, through hardship to the stars. Keeping the focus on the dreams and paving the path toward them with great determination.

Movement and stillness

I wanted the series to carry a story, the personality of my model, and a cinematic feel—a sense that there is more to it than still images. We achieved that by shooting many frames at a slower shutter speed. Whenever a train arrived or an escalator moved, we caught the motion blur while keeping Daria in perfect focus. That added depth and a feeling of movement to contrast the stillness of the images.

The change of location contributed to it as well. After shooting most of the series at Solna Strand, we hopped on a train and moved a couple of stations away to Västra Skogen. It felt vintage, lined with mosaics in the warm autumn colors I love. The two stations contrasted and complemented each other perfectly. One had a philosophical feel: the underground against the open sky above, something endlessly dreamy and romantic in a place that is industrially dark. The other resonated with the warmth and calmness usually found in a place of comfort. Together, with the movement between them, they made one story.

A signature series

When I create concepts and direct on location, I look for symbolism, for connections, for contrasts between things. That is at the very heart of my photography: that there is a purpose, a story, and a beauty in the images. My hope is that people see what I see, and then keep looking—finding messages, finding something that resonates with them, inspires them, or shows them that others share their experiences and their stories.

Without knowing it at the time, this shoot became one of my signature creative portrait works. Everything I look for is here. My philosophies, my visual identity, the concept, the direction, the techniques, the colors, the light, the movement, and the stillness all come together in one cohesive piece. To me it holds the essence of my work and my passion for the art of photography and storytelling.

The color palette of this series even became my branding colors, the ones I use everywhere from my website to printed materials. That is how much impact it had on me as a creator and on my business identity. They are fall colors, from my favorite season, a season that symbolizes ripeness: the feeling of knowing enough, being enough, and reaching a state from which you can look at things with wisdom and depth.

The depth I bring

There is a dreamy quality to these pictures—vintage, film-like, nostalgic. Daria is elegant and graceful, and her eyes meet the camera directly. She is speaking through the images, telling her story and her personality. The series is poetic, at moments dramatic, and mysterious. We are curious to learn more about her life, her day, her feelings. She is like an ancient sculpture we want to know more about. Who is this person? We get to unravel a little of her, while so much stays hidden behind the camera.

That unraveling is the depth I go through when I create a concept for a photo shoot. I strive to tell the story of my model and to bring the elements of their natural beauty into the series, with my own creative eye and techniques to help me get there. This is the service I offer, and it is made especially for creative people—artists, actors, musicians—people with an amplitude of personality, art, and culture behind them, which deserves just as deep an understanding and a personalized concept.

I am always eager to meet other creatives, learn about their art and what they care about, and create together a one-of-a-kind striking series that lives outside of time.

Photographer and author: Alina Veksler @veksalinaphotography
In my frame: Daria Isenova

Location: Solna Strand and Västra Skogen subway stations, Stockholm, Sweden

Gear used: Sony a7iii | Manual vintage lens Minolta MC Rokkor 58mm f/1.4

Alina Veksler—a creative portrait photographer based near Portland, Oregon, offering professional photography and creative direction for individuals and businesses seeking unique, tailor-made sessions defined by quality and artistry.

Want your unique story told like this? Let’s make it happen—inquire at veksalinaphotography.com