Issue 5
The upside of being.
My journey to being a full-time artist started in 2019. I had left an unsatisfying job and planned to travel, rest & recharge and look for gainful employment on my return. That never happened. Like many others my plans were scuppered, and my priorities shifted during the pandemic.
Instead, I got stuck into my photography, read a lot and wrote even more. At some point I realised that I would like to explore parts of my personality that did not involve being a human calculator; that I would like to explore this awesome world and my relationship to it. I learnt that being good at something does not mean you will always enjoy doing it – that life consists of seasons.
My partner was supportive. Her career was taking off in a pleasant kind of way and we had enough savings to see us through this transition. My plan, a pencil sketch really, was to explore Europe & its art whilst building my portfolio of reportage images.
Taking my creative pulse.
By the start of 2023 I had been working on this project for eighteen months and had committed to being a full-time artist.
Since I have no formal art training, I decided to take my creative pulse by signing-up for a portfolio review. I hoped that an independent assessment would identify themes on which I can build as an artist – either technical, formal or psychological – and areas of my craft I should improve.
The review helped me identify two strands that recur in my work. The first is layering complexities on top of the vignettes I capture on the streets. The second is the ability to abstract from the everyday meaning of objects and characters.
The solutions to these problems would, I hope, help me express dynamism, quietness, juxtaposition and time in my work.
About life's detail and texture.
Developing the first strand has taken me three months during which time I explored the work of Stephen Shore, Robert Frank and Massimo Vitali.
The pursuit of greater depth, detail and texture has slowed my productivity to a crawl. I now have some solutions. However, I am still exploring ways to incorporate medium and large format film photography into my process in a cost-effective way.
On time.
I started developing the second strand after the summer break – whilst also creating my first zine – by exploring the work of Daido Moriyama (I own way too many of his books!), Dali and Andre Breton.
However, the work of Hiroshi Sugimoto has profoundly challenged my notion of how photographs record time, light and space. By manipulating these variables using an old-fashioned view camera – and old-fashioned techniques – he can consistently abstract the object of his study from its everyday meaning.
The scope and depth of his body of work, some of which can be viewed at the Hayward Gallery in London, is staggering. Not only does it demand master craftsmanship, but it also requires an artistic vision that stretches over decades whilst patiently creating each piece in a project.
Still active today, his creative practice has evolved to include architecture, sculpture and the performing arts. This is refreshing in the context of the (mostly) western artists I have been studying.
Their creative output tends to peak early after which the necessity of life demands compromise. These divergences reflect Japan’s focus on societal harmony vs the West’s preoccupation with individualism.
Gestation.
My creative practice is shifting. This is the main reason I have written little during the last three months. That and the accompanying doubts.
This week it occurred to me that talking about the challenges I face on this journey will help me process them, whilst shining a light on what it takes to produce the next piece.
In the Spotlight
From Sugimoto’s 7 Days / 7 Nights installation, currently at the Hayward Gallery. This snap does not do this scene over lake Superior justice (gelatine silver print, 60 x 713/4 inches).
Watching the reaction of visitors to this installation was more interesting than reading the sparse captions. At first blush one would characterise these as minimalist. However, if you linger you see the detail and dynamism created by the tonal structure. Beyond that, the texture of the sea and sky yields an endless bounty of detail for the attentive viewer.
News from the studio.
I have published an edited sequence of my reportage work over the last twelve months at johandupreez.com. It reflects the themes I have explored over the last twelve months, including: love, age, time, quietness, dynamism and the paradoxical nature of life.
Please go have a look and leave a comment or share it with your community
That's a wrap.
That’s it – thanks for reading! As always, please feel free to hit reply and exchange your thoughts or to just say “hi”.
Johan du Preez
Photographer