When it comes to my gaze, I feel that it has a few layers to it. I am first drawn to the land, the shapes, the light, the texture, and the colours of it. From there, I am intrigued by the human-made objects, or what remains, the natural scars from flooding, fire, etc. Then the people. By nature, I am quiet, curious, and intrigued by the world around me. How we as humans live, and how we use this land. Overall I think my gaze as a photographer reflects those parts of my personality. When I am producing work, paid or personal, especially when making portraits, I am assertive and direct, but also kind and very aware of the tool I have in my hand. I want to build trust and have mutual respect with the people I work with and will happily spend time with them before or after shooting without my camera.
Of Mother Nature and Marlboro Men, by Deborah is a fascinating article. It helped to start me thinking about my approach and how I portray the lands and people I am choosing to photograph. And most importantly, why I want to pursue this path. "I suspect no landscape, vernacular or otherwise, can be comprehended unless we perceive it as an organization of space; unless we ask ourselves who owns or uses the spaces, how they were created and how they change.''
I instantly related to the opening quote of this article. The way we have used land and how it helps shape communities and cultures I find fascinating. Especially in western America. Its history stems from a lot of wonders and adventure along with greed and bloodshed over the land. From that we have created this somewhat glossy version of the American dream, which I feel is a little outdated and for the most part, has been portrayed with a masculine gaze since the 1800s.
'landscape is generally conceived of as an upbeat and wholesome sort of subject which, like mom and apple pie, stands indisputably beyond politics and ideology and appeals to ‘timeless values.’ It's fascinating to me to look at communities and how we have shaped the land to fit our needs. This is what I want to expand on in my project moving forward.
References : J.B. Jackson, 1985 via Bright Of Mother Nature and Marlboro Men.
Bright, 1985 Of Mother Nature and Marlboro Men