I have been thinking about “Place” more lately. As I’ve found myself settling into place here in Oregon, I’ve mentioned how much I’ve seen things shift. Not the least of which has been in my art, with my recent obsession with inspiration from trees. It makes sense, in a way. I’m looking to be inspired by what’s here, right in front of me. And in Oregon, in my small town of Corvallis, there are plenty of trees. It’s quite amazing how much forest there is to explore just a few minutes from my home. The urban forest in our streets and parks, and the true forest with acres of trees and miles of paths.
McDonald Forest, Corvallis, Oregon
For a while now, I’ve considered myself a “Photographer of Place” and that hasn’t changed with this shift. I see, even more than before, how important place is to what we create. Place is what we see every day. Place is where we exist. As a photographer, unless you work exclusively in a studio, “place” is part of what you photograph. You might say, “No, no, I photograph nature.” That’s place. The plants that grow are indicative of place. So are the cars we drive and the streets we walk and the textures of the materials we build with. All place.
San Francisco, California
We can visit new places, and let that inspire us, or we can be inspired by the places we have access to everyday. What I’ve realized with my recent shift is that it can be a choice. I can say, “I’m only inspired when I’m exploring a new place.” And I can limit myself. I can be frustrated by what I don’t see every day. I can constantly wish to be elsewhere. Or I can say, “I’m going to find something that inspires me in this place.” And I can free myself to create. Anytime, anywhere.
Cinque Terre, Italy
I think that my finding joy in the place I am right now is going to play out with creating even strong images when I visit a new place. I don’t know why, but I know it for truth, from somewhere deep down inside. As if being able to truly see what is right in front of me in a familiar place will make me more receptive as I visit new places.
Hebden Bridge, Yorkshire, UK
As I’ve been contemplating all of this, I find I am even more excited to teach A Sense of Place again this year. I think it will be a whole new experience for me, right along side all of you. Registration for the Las Vegas workshop in April is now open at Selah and registration for the 8-week eCourse, running April-May, will open soon.
What do you think… Want to join me in exploring place?
I like your philosophy of place, Kat. I believe it’s true that even in familiar places, there is something new to discover.
Even though I’ve done this class with you, I wish I had some extra money to do it again!! xo
I’m all about the place I’m at, it’s a lesson I learned when we first moved to the gulf coast, five hours south of where we were originally. But we only moved because we didn’t have a job, so it was so very difficult. It wasn’t exactly the choice we wanted, but you do what you have to….
And when we got here and all moved in, I was depressed, and didn’t want to go anywhere, ever. Eventually we joined a bible study group and one night there was a discussion about where our favorite place to be was. One of the women said that her husbands father said his favorite place to be was “acceptance” – wow – that was for me profound. In looking back I realize that I was so busy feeling sorry for myself that I had blinded myself to what was in front of me. I may never get to see the many places I would love to go, but that doesn’t stop me anymore from seeing what’s in my own backyard. Because if I can’t see what’s immediately in front of me, chances are it’s not going to be different somewhere else.
I even enjoy going back again, and again to my favorite places right around me because usually when I’m in the moment I’m locked in to certain things, so I love going back to see what I may have missed the first time.
Kim
Wow, “acceptance” as a place. That is really a profound idea. When we are in a place of acceptance, “where” we are in the world around us no longer matters, does it? Thank you for sharing this concept and your story. I thought of you and your story as I was writing this, knowing it has some similarities to mine. (Oh, and I’ll have alumni re-registration options for A Sense of Place this year – stay tuned!)
Place is so very important…it sprouted “bloom where you grow” among other things…but your thought that it is choice is what resonated with me. Everything is choice isn’t it? And when we choose to say I may not see “this”, what I am looking “for” but what can I see that is right in front of me? That’s such a gift!
You are right Sherry, seeing what is right in front of you is an amazing gift. Thank you for putting it that way!
“we can be inspired by the places we have access to everyday” – this is what I try to keep at the forefront of my mind each day as I walk my familiar streets. New places offer a wealth of exciting visual input – but it is digging deeper within the familiar and finding something new from the old that results in the most meaningful images for me.
I like how you put this: “Digging deeper within the familiar.” I like the idea of finding the depth a single place has to offer, rather than always skimming along the surface.
Oh, Kat. This really speaks to where I am right now:
I can be frustrated by what I don’t see every day. I can constantly wish to be elsewhere. Or I can say, “I’m going to find something that inspires me in this place.”
I love my new home, but I miss the old one so much, especially the trees and ocean and incredible natural beauty that is simply everywhere in Maine. I never anticipated living in a desert climate again, or in southern California, for that matter. I’m looking forward to taking “A Sense of Place” with you, in hopes of finding connections and ways to express myself through my photography in this place.
I feel your pain, Lee. It’s a hard thing to transition from a place we love to a new place. I think the best thing we can do for ourselves is find new things we love, different from the ones in the old place. You will find yourself settling in, as I did.