A rather difficult question to answer. What do I want my photos, dare I say art,to do? More over, how do I produce something that is capable of having such profound impact. I suppose a more personal question to answer is, why do I take pictures, what compels me to turn the dials, scroll through settings and then push a button to create an image? Many questions, few answers.
The lecture given by Helen and Newton Harrison was fascinating because their art influenced whole nation policies, not once but multiple times. It was, in my opinion, for all the right reasons. Their work has led them to “…uncover ideas and solutions which support biodiversity and community development” (The Harrison Studio,2015). What more is they are not scientist, politicians, local leaders, et cetera… they are artists that have made an impact by pursuing there beliefs.
Now, returning to the question. What do I want my art to do? I think I have an idea, yet it may be better illustrated with a Doctor Who reference:
There is an episode where the Doctor and his companion come across a painting of Time Lord origin. This painting depicts the destruction of an entire race of people and their planet. Time Lord art is special, paintings or photos are a literal instant of time captured and preserved in the picture. So that everything that is happening, (in this case the destruction of the planet) all the grief, loss, pain, suffering, every building crumbling is preserved in this painting. This makes the painting a 3 dimensional object, something that can be physically entered into.
Coming back to the real world, the photographs that we create may not be a literal time machine, but when one stops and thinks about what one instant really holds on a large scale, it becomes clear why this is so profound. Photographs do all the above, or they have the potential at the very least; they capture the emotions, the people, the place, the time… everything and when it all comes together thats when things happen.
Further returning to earth, my art, my photos, what do I want them to do? For one, I do not think I have ever taken a picture that would be worth calling art. I also have never thought about how it may impact others very much. Though I suppose that given my preference of landscape photography and my love of the ocean, I would want to try and influence more people to at the very least **TRY** to protect the ocean. It covers over 75% of the planet, it is only approximately 5% explored, and day by day, year by year, we are killing it. If I could make some impact that might help protect it, well that would be felicitous!
EDIT: It occurred after I posted this that I did not include something. The ocean is beautiful, a cliche, yes. Yet I think many people over look it. Rather then seeing the wonders before them, they look at the ocean and sea a big pool where Jaws may live. I believe that in order for people to start protecting the ocean, they must first see something that needs protecting.