In Romance languages, photography is an art form of feminine gender. In my view, irrespective of whether it is pursued by a man or woman, it requires the insight and sensitivity that normally belongs to the feminine hemisphere in each human being. Someone, much more authoritative than I, has compared photography to the art of Zen, suggesting the need for feminine sensibility. It is a cultural, but also a physical question. I once read that a woman¹s nose, if properly trained, becomes incredibly sensitive, above all in the presence of certain odors linked with basic biological functions: copulating, child-rearing, the search for food. Biologists have understood this for some time and ten years ago a number of experiments showed that women have a higher sensitivity towards the steroid androsterone found in large quantities in the underarm secretions of men. Photography is a question of scent, the "art of intuition".
In her artistic inquiry, Agnes Donnadieu goes beyond a normal vision of reality and her images are intriguing and provocative. Commercial photographs often show us stupendous faces and bodies that portray a world in which the ugly and mediocre do not exist and where settings play an extremely important role.
One of the elements that best characterizes Agnes¹style is her control over light that she exploits to impart full power to her images and subjects. Agnes Donnadieu¹s work has been called sexy, glamorous, erotic and fascinating. Her style is considered "European", but she has spent the last 9 years working in Chicago. Her images are works that reveal the influence of other artistic forms. Digital technology has given Agnes the freedom to express emotions and create settings in ways that would not have been possible with traditional techniques. Yet Donnadieu¹s style has its roots in her early experiences with photojournalism and the years she spent with her family in Paris. When still a girl, she followed her father and brother, French actor Pierre Bernard Donnadieu, as they first emigrated to Algeria and then to Montreal.
Towards the end of the 1970s, she received a job offer in Mexico City where she stayed for seven years working as a photojournalist for Novedades, the weekly supplement to a major national newspaper, and as a photography instructor at the Universidad Autonoma de Mexico.
Years have passed since then and Agnes has had other experiences, including as a film director, one that allows her to coordinate both print and video campaigns for her clients.

Written by Rosanna Checchi, Feature Writer Zoom International magazine, March/April 2003 Cover and Article, pages 2-7.