Three Photo Books That Changed My Ideas About Photography.

It was the early 80s and I had just started a commercial photography program at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. Honestly, I don’t know what I expected, but I was having a lot of doubts about whether it was a good fit. Everyone…and I mean everyone, was engaged in the pursuit of the perfectly sharp, high resolution image - one that hit you over the head with product placement. Girls draped over fancy cars, Bell motorcycle helmets shot on plexi with perfect droplets of water (really glycerin)… it all was shiny, shiny, shiny, sharp, sharp, sharp. I felt completely adrift and disconnected from this strange antiseptic environment that I found myself in. Not what I imaged an “Art” center would be.

Then one day, I find this book of grainy (and at times) out of focus images. Who knew what the #$# they were selling? They were vague, gauzy (without being too sweet) story-telling images, and I felt reborn - I’d found my place in the world. It remained an uphill climb for the rest of my time there but, Sarah Moon opened my eyes to a world that I’m still exploring. She helped me break that “sharp/shiny” barrier and bring a larger sense of storytelling to my work. If you’re in the SoCal area, I recommend you head over to Peter Fetterman’s Gallery at Bergamot Station - turn left as you walk in and you’ll see the most staggering piece of her work!

This book was also published in the early 80s. It was a lot of money and I was dead broke, but bought it anyway. While Francois Gillet had a very artistic approach, you could also see the connection to a commercial market, which was my task at hand. Instead of sterile studio settings, he was painting on surfaces and products - blurring the line between art and commerce. Both Gillet and Moon had left the “mark of the hand” on their imagery and that started me on a path to approaching advertising/editorial work in a way that would fit my sensibilities.

I first saw Palma’s work in the 90s at the Los Angeles International Photographic Print Exposition (which later became Photo LA). He was being shown at Lisa Sette’s Gallery - across the board she had the most interesting artists, many of whom were expanding beyond the traditional matted single image. His work became a logical next step for me, with his use of collage, mixed media and thinking beyond the rectangle. More importantly, I was struck by the strong evocative mood emanating from his work - each piece had so much room for the viewer to explore.

I have mixed feelings about my photographic education - on one hand, it gave me a really strong grounding in technique, which was essential in the film days. On the other hand…maybe it wasn’t so essential and it set me down a path that took a long time to break free of. Or…maybe I was expecting too much from an institution and we’re always responsible for our own education.