|
For me, photography is a daily expression. I have documented my life since age 10. At the root of all art and culture is the routine of documenting. I am most inspired by the methodology of South African land artist Strijdom van der Merwe who uses photography as routine. He makes land art, art that is then swept away by the wind or the sea. But the action of the elements is beyond him; he has done his bit, as he would say. His planning and meticulous, neat expressions, the shapes and lines in vast compositions, is inspiration for any artist, since the line is the basic necessity in art. What happens to it when he walks away? How is it taken up by the elements? That is beyond him. It speaks symbolically of how people take art. How art is taken up is beyond the control of the artist. The role of the artist is to execute art well, hopefully with a measure of cultural gravitas, and to document the process. For Strijdom van der Merwe, what is left is the photo he takes. Documentation.
Words inspire me to capture images, and images drive me to write words. The two are interlinked. |
|