Sorry, we don’t do Bedheads…

…And that’s okay. There’s plenty to love about Mexican wrestling masks. So mysterious, no? Yes…Downright strange, yet still somehow wonderful. There’s an alter ego in all of us but who among the masked masses are willing to reveal the other side? Adam does it all the time and the funny thing is, his alter ego actually wears a mask…

Head: Adam Bronkhorst, his wife Alison

Hometown: Brighton, England, UK

Occupation: Real Estate

Adam is something of a rock star on Flickr these days and you can see why. What began as a passing interest in Mexican lucho libre wrestling has become a craze for Flickr users who now wait with bated breath to see Adam’s next shot. But there’s so much more to see behind the mask… Read Adam’s exclusive Bedhead interview for more…

MB:I look at this picture and I see a really happy couple having some quiet time, enjoying a kind of anonymity that only guys named “El Santos” or “Mysterio” would know …Oh heck, what’s with the wrestling masks, Adam?

AB:LOL, I’m taking a self portrait a day for a year and posting the shots on Flickr, this is the first in a ‘working week’ set. thankfully I have a very understanding wife, who doesn’t mind being in the shots!

MB: How did it all start? Didn’t the Flicker community kind of pull you into this?

AB:Yes that’s right, Flickr is a great community and one of my contacts saw a pic with the mask and challenged me to do a weeks worth of shots with the mask on. I would have probably never have done the week otherwise.

MB:And you never disappoint, do you? You really are your favorite model, are you not?

AB: I had never really done a proper self portrait before starting the project. What I love about using me, is that I never get bored, or fed up waiting for me to set up and I can ask me to do anything (within reason) and I usually say yes.

MB: We have an old expression here in America; its for folks that kind of love to entertain the room…A “ham-bone” if you will. Is this what your are? How does Alison deal with it?

AB:The funny thing is that I’m actually a reserved, serious kinda guy, nothing like my persona on flickr. I am very passionate about photography and I think sometimes Alison can get fed up with me and my obsession, but as I said she’s very understanding and has actually started to do a self portrait a week so she’s not left out.

MB: Well, bless her heart - What is it about that mask that really changes a person? I’d swear that your build looks bigger when you have it on…

AB: I’m not sure, you do feel as though you are someone different with it on, and in going out and taking the shot in the bus stop I kinda figured that there is no point being embarrassed because people can’t see my face, its probably more embarrassing for the people with me.

MB:Is there anything you haven’t done with the mask on? …Never mind. Don’t answer that.

AB:We all have our limits….lol

MB:Lucho libre is quite an old form of theatre in Mexico. What have you learned from these wrestlers?

AB: I actually got to meet three of them in person and they kept their masks on all day, even when not performing. It was so professional and they made sure that they behaved with dignity and like entertainers. it was quite inspiring.

MB:You are heavily involved with the Flickr community, you have loads of fans. Is this the new face of portrait art and visual art in general? Are you ripping the price tags off?

AB:I think that art will always have a ‘new place’ that is the nature of art. But what I like about flickr is that I can get about 1000 hits on my stream a day, lots of feedback on shots and I can meet like minded people. I don’t know of any gallery where an amateur photographer / artist could do that.

MB: I notice you gather lots of props for your shots. Do you spend weeks planning photos or do you just grab what’s available?

AB: A little of both, I’m quite an obsessive person and have a bit of time on my hands so i tend to think about photography a lot, so whenever I’m out and see something appropriate I pick it up. Some days are planned in advance like this mask set and some days I have no idea what I’m gonna do until it happens. I suppose its a bit like life.

MB:Indeed…What are you going to do next to assault the senses of the Flickr community?

AB:hmmm, I haven’t got that planned yet, I’d like to do a week showing people where I live and I plan on doing a James Bond week, when the film comes out, and who knows what people might suggest to me….you’ll just have to keep watching!

MB: We most certainly will. Has the BBC called you yet about a sitcom based on a Mexican wrestler from Brighton who deals in real estate?

AB: LOL there probably is already a show like that somewhere, but I’m open to suggestions and if the money’s right well, who knows…

MB: No problem. I’m calling them now. Get an agent. Thanks very much, AB. Best of luck to you!

AB: My pleasure, thanks for your interest

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