When I started practicing photography a decade ago I was heavily driven by how my photos would be perceived by others. How it compared to traditional landscape photography, which ārulesā it followed, and ultimately how it would perform on social media. On one hand, this constant comparing and anxiety-fueled approach to photography pushed me to grow and learn in a number of ways, but it also restricted me, led me to have an unhealthy relationship to art, and was never coming from a true place of self. Instead, it was created with the perception of others at the forefrontā¦over-analyzed, calculated, and usually resulted in my version of a photo that had already been taken before. Granted, Iām proud of everything Iāve captured over the years. I still love landscape photography, following the craft and seeing the work of others, but there was always the underlying feeling that I was taking photos for Instagram as opposed to myself. Creating with a need for validation. ahh.
fast forward to āØqueernessāØ
Prior to being open about my sexuality and identity (and neurodiversity) I felt like I was living a contrived life of what I thought people wanted to see. Living my day to day with the constant perception of others in mind. The fear of being perceived as anything but a ānormalā straight āmanā led to changes in the language I used, what clothes I wore, how I stood, how I sat, and even what photos I took. whack.
Point beingā-the photos Iāve taken the past few years, and more specifically the photos in this project, are me dismantling that, ultimately leading to an antithesis of my photography roots. There are photos in this project that are the unrecognizable innards of national parks as opposed to the vistas. Photos taken because they felt like they needed to be. Or more accurately, I felt like I needed to take them. Captured with introspection and intuition, this project is really just a bunch of moments that moved me.
Anyway, Iām proud of it š
If youāre interested in picking up a copy you can snag one in person at
@collapse_gallery or order a copy from my website.
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