Artist Interview Series: Alex Bex

08 Aug 2025

Part of an ongoing series of interviews delving into the artists, designers and thinkers & doers of our time.

1. Where are you based and how is it shaping you?

I’m based in Berlin, Germany, though I travel frequently to Texas for photography projects. The cultural contrast between Berlin and Texas is pretty obvious. Masculinity, a theme central to my work, has been especially interesting to observe across these two environments. In Berlin, a place famous for being very progressive, I’m surrounded by a wide spectrum of masculine expression, something I’ve come to view as one of the strengths of the city. And in contrast, I often notice that my own sense of manhood leans sometimes more toward traditional norms. 

But when I’m working within the ranching community of Texas, which is absolutely more conservative, I sometimes find it harder to relate to other men. Still, masculinity isn’t one-sided. What inspires me are the small moments and interactions that contradict the usual stereotypes of traditional masculinity. Moving back and forth between these very different worlds has helped me better understand my own identity and the social expectations I grew up with. It’s also taught me to appreciate the diverse backgrounds people come from. Something I see as essential in a world that can feel increasingly divided.

2. Which book is on your bedside table?

I’m a bit late to the party (the book was published in 2017), but I just finished reading Flights by Olga Tokarczuk. It’s a book composed of short stories about the philosophy and psychology of movement and travel, and their relation to the body. It speaks a lot to me. There’s also a photobook I keep coming back to: Deep Springs by Sam Contis. It’s a long-term documentary project about a men-only school in California where the students work with cattle and the land. The photographs explore masculinity and the relationship between men, their bodies, and the landscape. The book is a major inspiration for projects I’m working on now.

3. What social accounts do you keep returning back to?

I think Instagram has been an incredible tool for photographers to connect with other artists, curators, and industry professionals. It’s helped me share my work, express myself, interact with people who care about photography, and discover new projects. But the downside is that you mostly see people’s highlights, never the effort, setbacks, or challenges that led them there. It’s easy to slip into comparing yourself to everyone else’s successes and feeling like you’re not doing enough. As a millennial, my career has always been intertwined with social media, so it’s hard to imagine life without it, though I sometimes catch myself wondering what things would feel like if it weren’t part of my daily reality.

4. Favourite piece of art?

It’s hard for me to choose a single favorite piece of art, but I can share my favorite recent discovery: a film called Jessica Forever, a French modern sci-fi drama directed by Caroline Poggi and Jonathan Vinel. It’s set first in the Toulouse region and later in Corsica. The movie is beautifully composed, eerie and melancholic, and seeing those qualities applied to the area where I grew up made me realize how it, too, can be romanticized and aestheticized. This has been inspiring for me, and for a project I’m working on in my hometown of Balma, near Toulouse, France.

5. What song have you got on repeat?

A few months ago, a young cowboy I was hanging out with in Texas played a country song from a pretty popular singer: Heading South by Zach Bryan. I’m not the biggest country music connoisseur, and this song is a bit too pop for country music in my opinion, but it stuck with me and accompanies me now every now and then on my photography trips.

6. The biggest life lesson you have learnt?

I’m not sure if this is the best advice I’ve ever received, but it’s the most recent piece of advice that stayed with me. When my projects aren’t going well, I have a tendency to overthink and immediately start planning alternatives. My father once told me to focus on what I’ve committed to and put all my energy into making it work, rather than wasting time searching for backup plans. That advice helped me a lot, and I’ve since passed it on to people around me. If you want to do something, go for it. As long as it hasn’t clearly failed, there’s still a chance it can work.

7. One person that inspires you?

I have a few people who inspire me around me, family and friends that I’m proud of, and influence me in very different ways. But I think my biggest inspiration was my grandmother. She was a person who was very interested in the world and who traveled a lot. I took a lot from her in that aspect. She spoke many languages and lived abroad most of her life, which is quite unusual for her generation and in the culture she grew up with. She was a very strong woman who went through a lot in her life, and on top of it all, she was a very elegant woman. I wish I could have told her all this!

8. Do you have anything exciting you’re currently working on?

I’m currently working on a few different projects. One of them is an ongoing series about male friendships, inspired by my own life events. It takes place in my hometown of Balma, near Toulouse in the south of France. A kind of non-place that sits somewhere between the city and the countryside. In line with my broader focus on masculinity, I’m interested in examining the dynamics of male relationships, which can be incredibly nuanced and complex, especially at a young age. I feel this subject is still underrepresented in visual media, and it feels especially relevant today, as the idea of masculinity continues to evolve.

9. Next place on your travel wish list?

I’m very focused on traveling to and spending time in Texas these days for several projects I’m working on, especially one I just started. It’s a documentary about youth and masculinity in Austin, a city on the frontier between conservative and progressive values. My next trip is planned in a few months. 

Texas is fascinating to me. It’s a place full of contradictions and extremes, and it’s also a significant part of my cultural upbringing that I never fully experienced as a teenager or adult. I was born to a Texan mother and a French father, and I spent the first years of my life in Austin before growing up in Toulouse, France. These projects are a way for me to reappropriate a side of myself that had been dormant for a long time.

10. What do you think about the state of advertising?

Even though advertising is ultimately about driving sales, I appreciate some of the ideas that are put out there, especially when they’re original, artistic, and tap into the symbols and themes of our zeitgeist. Before becoming a photographer, I worked for record labels as a marketing manager for album releases, so developing creative campaigns to promote artists was my thing. There are some ad campaigns out there that are truly impressive, and I happily let myself fall for them. I’m very interested in how we can push the boundaries of storytelling, and I follow many visual artists who work exclusively for brands. The most recent campaign that really stayed with me was a Diesel piece directed by Grant James Thomas, which struck me with its audacity.

To see more of Alex's work check out his Instagram.