The tree and the sea.
I am often asked why, if my passion is
for painting, did I choose to teach photography. It's a good question
and the simple answer is that it was more fun. Photographers are
gregarious, share stuff, move more quickly and have a wider spectrum
of activity and are not so scared of messing up.
Another reason was that I wanted to instill in photography students the slower and often deeper instincts
of a painter.
Sounds somewhat elite this doesn't it?
But that is not the case at all.
Let me explain by giving a simple
example from this past week of how this is still relevant in my life,
a life which has me floating in the space between these two
expressive forms of creativity, respecting both for their differences
and power to affect our lives in incredible ways.
The Tree
This I pass half a dozen times a day
walking to my garden studio. I posted a photo of it to our Facebook
page 'Mindful Photography'
I added an explanation, describing it
as a City, probably three times my age, which is the home of a colony
of 10,000 ants, spiders, beetles and a myriad of micro creatures as
well as black squirrels occasionally, and of course birds; a living
organism in itself and a host to other living creatures.
Not an unusual thing to do you might
say, but for me this is so. Unusual because I have always taught that
a photograph must, if it is meaningful photograph, say all of these
things by the singular power of its image alone.
So I would impress on students that
making a photo is easy, but to fully absorb oneself in the subject of
interest, absolutely so, this is what one must do, even before even
thinking about picking up a camera.
The Sea
And this below is a painting I made at
the same time.
I live by the Adriatic sea in Italy and
this is one of a series of the influences this area is having on me,
feelings and thoughts and mindsnaps which are bouncing into me, of
the wind, the colours of the sea and the adjacent land, the boats and
the stark boatyards, the smells even of the fishing boats and the
continuous movement of birds and people around its shores.
But can you see how different these
processes are?
There were times in which I forbade
students from taking more than one photo a month; all the time
slowing them down, becoming what we now refer to as mindful (although
I prefer mind empty, except it sounds a bit odd)
So, there you are. Memories which
surface from time to time which serve as teachers.
Historically of course, I am referring
to a time at Bournemouth Art College in the 80s and 90s (when it was
nicknamed the Zen School of Photography); a time when there was time,
and with only a small number of students too. But to me, these
principles of course still apply; that any form of creative
expression must involve complete absorption into the arena in which
we choose to express ourselves.
And you get there by going there.
And Michelle Rumney and Michael are
running a workshop in Italy in May entitled 'Time and Space to be
Creative' Click
here for more info or write to
michael@starstone.org
