The value of throwaway photos
What good is a digital photo if it never leaves your camera?
Forget about digital cameras — when was the last time you actually printed out a smartphone photo? Delete, delete, delete. Paradoxically, I’m finding throwaway photos make it easier for me to be a working artist.
My smartphone has become my other short-term memory bank. Before I leave the studio for the day, I now take a photo, then type a little text to remind me of where I left off. Even an image without text helps. It gets me back into the creative flow, even when days pass before I can continue a work-in-progress.
And that visual reminder saves time too: I don’t need to un-glue a collage element to fix a preventable mistake. As Jacqui Palumbo noted in a recent article: “We are taking more photos than ever today, but do we really value them?“ Oh yes, yes I do… especially when the rest of my life elbows its way past my studio practice. How do you use your ‘useless’ photos? Tell me on Instagram or Facebook.
Inside a private art studio visit
When was the last meeting you had that made you this happy?
An art collector savoring his new purchase after a studio visit
When you visit an artist’s studio, you get to see whichever artworks you like, not just the one or two I’ve submitted to an art exhibit. It took a year to arrange this private meeting: not because it’s a complicated process, but because we all have lives outside of receptions and art fairs. (I know — art world blasphemy.)
Seattle Art Fair 2019
Luckily, we ran into each other again at this year’s Seattle Art Fair. That gave us a chance to coordinate our calendars. I’m not able to do open studio hours, so I emailed him three openings in my schedule.
This collector didn’t ask to see a specific artwork, or go down a studio visit checklist. What he asked about were the backstories: he got to know each piece. So the visit was more about recognizing the pieces he loved.
In-situ photo of “Safe/ Not Safe (Semiahmoo).” Photo credit: Diane Venti.
And that’s the thing: this art is going to become part of your life. So I get that it may take more than one visit for someone to find the piece that’s going to move in with you, so to speak. You can get my undivided attention via text or email. And then it’s a date… well, not a date date, but an appointment with your artwork destiny.