ISSUE 21
We long for creativity — a beautiful wondrous conversation — elusive and tantalizing.
Photography is my passion. It is not only a little interest — I have many of those, but this is the one I can never leave behind. It lurks in the shadows, it follows me on a road trip and it never lets me go. It is a love affair that grabs me and pushes me to explore. To take a risk and away with reason. To get involved and never mind.
Passion is energy and there is nothing rational about it. It pushes you to the edge, takes up your weekends and every minute of spare thought. It makes you chase your dreams, but to chase something as big as a dream takes time. My tomatoes took 3–4 months to grow, a fig tree takes 12 months to produce figs again — how long to catch a dream?
According to Elisabeth Gilbert, the ancient Greeks believed that creativity was a divine attending spirit that came to us humans from a distant and unknowable source. We need to treat it encouragingly; listen when it has something to say, and in-between times look out for anything interesting to share. We listen, try to understand and try to find a way to hold it long enough to decode it. A creative process does not always behave rationally.
We all struggle from time to time with our projects, our careers, our passions. We question the input and weigh up the outcome. Sometimes the equation does not balance, but there is nothing to be afraid of.
This month I present five fearless, dream chasing artists who found the perfect moment and held it.
Mickey Smith
Matthias Heiderich
Simon Harsent
Klaus Pichler
Marco Vernaschi
