urban ku # 188 ~ it just is
Thursday, May 29, 2008 at 09:16AM 
It was a sunny day • click to embiggenIn another example of an item / topic making its way around the internet, Joe Reifer's Going deeper may require more abstract excursions blog entry is, as they say, sweeping the nation.
It seems that, at least in educated circles, his notion about photo blog blather, blabber, and banality has resonated with those for whom photography is more than entertainment. References to his post can be found all over the place, including one that held a big surprise for me (read to the bottom of the entry).
For those of you who have not taken the time to read Joe's entry, let me give you the simplified Cliff Note summary - Joe was looking for inspiration regarding "what inspires so many of us to carry around these little boxes". In his quest for such, he found precious little of it in all the usual internet photo blog places. So, he's going to look for it somewhere inside himself.
Simple enough. Or, is it?
IMO, Joe wasn't asking a photography question at all ... unless you understand that his referent (photography) is merely a metaphoric device for the connoted (implied) subject of his question. At its root, Joe's question is about life - what it means to be human. Nothing less than a sentient being's quest for meaning - a life worth living.
In photography terms, it seems that Joe just want to make pictures that have meaning and convey a truth about what it means to be human. In seeking to do so, he is looking for a connection to others who are seeking the same thing in order to establish a bond that helps create and foster a synergistic energy that invigorates the spirit and motivates the mind and body so that he can "just do it." IMO, Joe is pursuing nothing less than the basic human desire to be part of a tribe and to be of some worth to the community.
OK, you say, but enough of the commie-pinko, anti- American, socialist, pointy-headed, liberal BS. What inspires you to carry around these little boxes?
For me, the desire / need to carry around these little boxes is 2-fold.
The first inspiration, and by far the hardest one to "understand", is undoubtedly subconscious. I would even call it preternatural - what some might call a "gift". Simply put, I was born to "see". I can't explain it any other way, that is, unless you want to delve into the science of genetics/DNA - which I will, in a purely anecdotal way.
There simply has to be something to the fact that 4 generations of Hobson men were / have been "born to see".
My grandfather (generation 1), unbeknownst to me (generation 2) until after his death, was a skilled and avid amateur photographer. Even though I have absolutely no conscious memory of him ever making a picture, I do have several albums of early childhood family pictures - all taken, processed, and printed (BW & color) by him. I discovered his interest in photography after I had begun my own, so it's fair to say that his photography background had absolutely no (conscious) influence the development of mine.
The same can not be said of my son (generation 3) Aaron's interest (and unbelievable success) in photography. He grew up with at least a tangental awareness of my photographic endeavors. But, despite that reality, he evinced absolutely no interest in picture making until little over a year ago, when he purchased a camera and, within 8 months time, found his vision with his Cinemascapes, which are now being exhibited, written about, and collected all over the world. Keep in mind that Aaron has had NO training in things photographic or things Art. None. Nada. Zip.
It is also worth noting that Aaron's day job is as graphic designer / art director - a position that he did not want to apply for when it was advertised because it required a college degree. He has only a high school GED - I pulled him out of high school after his sophomore year because it was such an incredible waste of his time, energy, and talent. Aaron apprenticed to me doing design work, something for which he seemed "gifted", and, in doing so, built a design portfolio that simply blew away all those of all the college grads who were vying for the position he now holds.
Now, here comes the somewhat, to me, scary part - my grandson Hugo (generation 4), son of Aaron. Simply put, this kid, at 3.5 years old, has a visual awareness and acuity that gives me the willies, goose bumps, and standing hair on the back of the neck. He is the very living, breathing definition of a true visual / picture thinker. Where this will lead him is, at this time, anyone's guess but I do worry about his future education experience.
For those of you who made it this far, thanks for bearing with me. I share this personal experience with you for 2 reasons:
1) I say phooey on those who think that Artists are not "special". In a very real way, it is a "gift" that not everyone shares in. A "talent" for Art is a very real thing and, at least when it comes to reaching the highest level of artistic expression, a preternatural disposition (no matter when it emerges) for "seeing" really does matter. And...
2) I wonder if any of you have a similar experience, personal or observed in others.
PS - stay tuned. Tomorrow, the conscious part of what inspires me to carry around those little boxes.
Reader Comments (4)
You clearly struggle as a generational thinker, missing the fact that from you grandfather to your grandson is 5 generations.
Mark - People seem to be reading a lot of different things into my rant. Your distillation of the real point being about beauty, truth, and tribe is on the mark. Photography can be a spiritual instrument - just like music, painting, or whatever your chosen form may be. The desert is a metaphor. The idea is to push beyond the boundaries set in place by systems, containers, and others opinions in order to achieve something even more beautiful, true and mysterious. Thanks for keeping the fire stoked.
hey Joe - glad to hear that I got it "right". It seemed pretty obvious, but then again I'm experienced in seeing the connoted in things.
hey the wife - I know, I know, but it skipped my dad's generation so I'm not counting that one.
My grandmother was a photographer and gave me my first camera when I was five -- her old No. 2 Brownie. I loved that camera and wore it out. Still have it sitting in my living room. Sometimes when I'm out with a camera it feels like she's with me again (she passed away at age 94 six years ago). Can't get enough of that feeling.
My mother was not a photographer and had no inclination in that direction before she went blind from diabetes in her twenties. I never met my father so I can't say if anything came from his side.
I just know that I can't stop seeing "images". It can be scary as hell when I'm driving because my brain will "autocrop" images for me. Everything but the picture I'm looking at disappears. This can be problematic when there are, y'know, oncoming vehicles and such on the road I'm supposed to be paying attention to. Sometimes it gets so bad I have to pull over until it passes.