'The End of the World'

You have some interesting concepts and stories you tell in your photography. Some of your influences/interests are clear from your work, like bicycles and animals. What are some of your other artistic influences that you base your work off of or around?

Here’s an entire page of name dropping various photographers, artists, musicians, and writers that have influenced my interests so far.

Most the stuff I pull from these sources has to do with psychology, dream interpretation, the power of self, hope, hopelessness, etc. For example:

Dario Argento’s horror film “Suspiria” is a phantasmagorical explosion of color and absurd violence, set to a soundtrack best described as the whispers and screams of an amusement park haunted house. None of it would work as separate elements in other films, but together, lensed in gorgeous anamorphic widescreen, it’s sublime nightmare you can’t stop watching.

Egon Schiele’s paintings of gaunt, twisted bodies and faces show strength, not frailty. Peter Chung’s Aeon Flux series is clearly influenced by Schiele’s work, with a lead character more comfortable moving from thrusting shoulders/hips then elbows/knees than pouty Charlize Theron in a cat suit.

Mariachi El Bronx, the alter ego of L.A. hardcore punk band The Bronx, embraces their duality through dedication to traditional Mexican music. You can feel the love of the genre in their Mariachi albums, with none of the popular post-modern irony. They would get along with Yendoo Jung, whose “Bewitched” photography project clearly illustrates the differences between the lives people live and dream to live.

Haruki Murakami’s novels blend hardboiled detective noir, science fiction, and dream logic as easily as normal people tie their shoes. His stories are often funny, frequently horrifying, and usually don’t have a conventional point. But their details worm their way into your brain for weeks to follow.

<< Previous | Next >>