OK, I will admit it to y’all, I am lost.
This is not the first time for me. I’ve been here before. In fact, I believe that throughout history, most artists have experienced periods of time asking themselves what direction their work is going.
In the past, my questions usually surrounded process: the methods I was using to both make negatives and later turn the pictures into objects. Although the variables of process, camera choice, and such were different each time, making photographs was always the constant. I was always thinking in terms of photographs and the handful of themes I explored for all these years. I am exploring this very idea of the changing directions in my work over the years in my current book project, “Sketchbook”.
This version of changing directions is different for me in a way that is new and, in many ways, hard to articulate. I have had my head turned by a new muse, a new chapter calling my name in the dark. It is not based in photography, and this is the rub and the scary part. I have been a photographer my whole adult life.
The truth is I have learned to be comfortable in the state of being lost. I recommend to everyone who will listen to shake things up, challenge yourself to dig deeper into your artistic self and see what else might be wanting to come forward and be part of your journey.
Please join the conversation and let me know if you have found yourself lost on this road.
Be well,
Ray
