The Style That Holds Us
In an earlier piece, I suggested that style may be less something we choose than something that slowly appears. A trace left by the way we look.
The same light.
The same distance from the world.
Over time, a body of work begins to hold together. That coherence matters. It gives a portfolio its shape, and slowly creates a visual world.
But perhaps it also creates an expectation.
My own work has gradually settled into black and white. Not as a rule, but because it became the most natural way for me to strip a scene back to structure, light, silence, and presence. A colour photograph placed among those images would not simply be different. It might feel out of place.
And then a small question appears:
Am I leaving it aside because it is weaker — or because it no longer fits the work people expect from me?
“An artist must never be a prisoner even of himself, a prisoner of a style, a prisoner of a reputation, a prisoner of good fortune.”
I believe in it too much.
So the question remains: when does a style still hold the work together — and when does it begin to hold the artist in place?
The photographs are gathered here:
Selected Works
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So as to your question "when does a style still hold the work together — and when does it begin to hold the artist in place?" I think it depends who you make photographs for. If you shoot for yourself you make photos of what you like and how you like to do it so it holds your work together. Arguably, it could hold you in place - but only as long as it interests you. As your interests change you will change your place without second thought. If you shoot for others, your audience controls you and they expect consistency so it holds you in place. Personally, I prefer to shoot for myself and if others like than it's fantastic. If others don't like it, I'm fine with that too.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Mike. Shooting for yourself is probably the best protection against that. Though a body of work still builds its own coherence, and that can quietly start to guide what you include or leave out. I’m happy where the work has settled, but I don’t want it to close in on itself. This winter I’d like to explore more night photography and return to portraiture. Colour may come back too, slowly. Probably easier when you’re not too worried about how it lands.
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