This weekend I watched a workshop provided by creativeLIVE and taught by the wonderful Brooke Shaden. It was eye opening. And it made me think about why I do what I do. Why I take the pictures that I take.
I like to show a perspective of an object that you wouldn't have otherwise considered. I like to take photographs of things that are decrepit, falling apart, on their way out of existence. I want to imprint those images in your mind (and preferably on your wall) so that they are never forgotten.
But why? Why do I want you to never forget those objects/places/people?
In her workshop Brooke asked us to consider why we do what we do. What are we doing it for?
I thought about this long and hard. Why do I take these photographs? When I thought about it, when I was completely honest with myself, I came to this first conclusion: I want the recognition. But I felt I had to go further than that. Why do I want the recognition? Why do I want people to say "wow, you take beautiful photographs?" And I came to my conclusion: I don't want to be forgotten. I take photographs of things I don't want you to forget because I don't want to be forgotten myself. I suppose it's come from a life long feeling of being forgotten. Not being invited to gatherings that everyone else was invited to, being left out by those who were supposed to be my friends, to silly things like no one reading my pick for book club or forgetting my birthday.
It's a selfish reason to take photographs and will probably not lend to a lot of creative motivation in the long run. But I found it interesting about myself that I feel the need to create unforgettable photographs because socially I am rather quite forgettable. Some of you loyal friends will probably scoff at this statement, but I digress that I am socially awkward, I know it and admit it. And now that I've made this personal epiphany I need to move past it. I need to find a creative motivation that doesn't revolve around me.
So I'm going to work on that. And I'm glad for Brooke Shaden's workshop that made me question my artistry and motivation. Right now I've decided my motivation is to just have fun in order to come to what style and objects I want to photograph on a regular basis. I'm pretty sure I'll find my way to it in the end. And don't worry, I don't think I'll be photographing utensils the rest of my life. Though, these do look pretty spectacular, if I'm allowed to say so.
Spoon | (c)M.M.Hewitt 2014
Knife | (c)M.M.Hewitt 2014
Fork | (c)M.M.Hewitt 2014