Cara Delevingne | In `I Only Want You To Love Me` book by MILES ALDRIDGE

Venus Smiles, 2011

MILES ALDRIDGE believes that his photography - which illustrates a bittersweet view of the world - is more relevant than ever these days. On Wednesday, he will open his latest exhibition at Somerset House - named after his new book, I Only Want You To Love Me.

"The title refers to buying clothes and products to make people love you more, the stuff we put on to make ourselves more attractive," Aldridge told us. "It isn't really to do with love, but vanity. Through advertising, dreams are sold to us. A show like Mad Men is so popular because we're aware of the tricks of ads now more than ever - there's more of a nod and a wink about it all." 

Aldridge, who has been creating the work included in this exhibition for the past decade, is best known for his colourful, glossy - to the point of almost plastic - imagery. Women are always his focus, usually shot in positions to make them appear troubled, passive or disturbed. 

"I just don't find men as interesting to look at," he explained. "Painters from the history of art have always used women to tell their stories, from Delacroix to Picasso, not that I'm comparing myself to them. By playing with beauty and colour you can flip a message and make it more palpable. With women, I can look at them objectively, quite literally through a lens, and try to understand their beauty. I'm not as interested in getting up close with men." 

He hopes that the public see something of themselves in his pictures, that they find relief in knowing others feel the same inertia and cynicism. "I think that's why my work is collected and enjoyed," he said. "It's not black and white though - we don't exist within an evil empire. It's complicated. The world is a strange and troubling place and we live in the middle of it." I Only Want You To Love Me is on show at Somerset House from July 10 until September 29.

Text + photos from: vogue.co.uk