in the past 2 months (but probably more over a longer span of time) i have received feedback from magazines, blogs, publishers, and the like all commenting on my work. i have heard that it's beautiful, striking, moving, lovely, etc., and i'm terribly grateful for the support. but there have also been a few comments from those same people that seem to dismiss all previous statements.
recently these statements have made me question not my work but the goals of said individuals in the fields of modeling, fashion, photography, and art (some of these categories blend at times, some of them are separate at times). here are a few things i have been told:
- your work is too artsy for us.
- you need to shoot more like (insert names here that i will not reveal)
- maybe this would work if you had a hotter model
- this is too polished for us, too arty
- please don't think we're only in this for the nudity
- he doesn't fit with the other models in the spread; please don't think this is about race
"we hope you understand" - trust me, i do. i understand that we have come to the point where art/fashion/modeling worthy of publishing = abs, penises, erotic nudity, porn/porn stars. as i photograph mostly men i am speaking from that perspective specifically and unashamedly admit my ignorance to the female aspects in this arena. if we are to shoot like each other, what's the point of artistic expression, styling, creativity, variety...? if we all need to shoot "hotter" models, maybe that's why we can always see focus on abs but model expressions look like they were caught in the heat of taking a standardized test in a language they can't understand. and when did something considered art become too much to publish?
maybe i should take it as a compliment. if my work is too artsy, i should go to famous museums and tell them to exhibit me. oh wait, they would think i'm crazy. whatever the case, somehow "artsy" has become a death knell to photography...as least for me. should i think myself better than others because i'm artsy? when i'm being put down as being too artsy does that simply mean i'm high brow and the reviewer's publication is lesser than? maybe these negative comments are really positive. as you can see i'm not here to offer answers; sometimes posing questions works best to make you think how you feel about things from your own perspective.
i like art. i enjoy the photography of others because it is different from my own. i am happy to see fashion work, fitness work, nude work, portraits, headshots, scenic photography, and so much more. variety is the spice of life but it seems tunnel-vision will get you more places these days. so for now i am content to stand at the starting line and work on growth and development; i don't need to be in the race for cloning images and getting published because i shot the model whose body looks like you could grate cheese on him. faces are different...body types are different...everyone has something unique to capture. i celebrate this atmosphere of range in my work, and again i'm grateful for those who support it. and for those who don't, there are other artists out there to support who may relate to your visual senses better - that's the power of difference (not pine-sol).
the moral of the story is i'm bored with this approach to what is being called fashion, art, culture, photography, modeling, and such. i think i'm bored with this rant now, too. where's my tylenol? darn this flu season.
"i hope you understand." - and you can quote me on that.
- ej
ps - i'll be posting some new work after this rant. maybe you'll like it, maybe you won't. what matters most is i like it and the people featured like it, as well. beyond that, the subjectivity or objectivity is yours . . .
