s+c interviews: meg wachter.

S+C Interviews is back! This time I’m totally pumped to have spent some time with NYC-based photographer Meg Wachter. I fell madly in love with her photo project “Dumped”, which has received some major and well-earned buzz. Turns out Meg is as rad as her need to douse people with breakfast cereal and take pictures of it, and she was kind enough to send some equally excellent out-takes from the “Dumped” shoot and some other remarkable and personal images as she shares her thoughts on “sploshing”, fake blood, and Björk…

Me: Tell me a bit about your background. How did you discover photography?

Meg: I discovered photography in high school and used the darkroom as a means of escaping my social awkwardness — I also admittedly had a crush on a boy at the time in my class. We only had one or two levels of photo classes, so I attended a photography workshop at local college over the summer for gifted and talented students. That was also my first exposure to retouching that I can remember.

As a senior in high school, I applied to Ohio University’s prestigious school of photojournalism and was rejected (in all honesty I didn’t know, at the time, the difference between photojournalism and commercial photography.) I still attended O.U. anyway and reapplied my sophomore year to their school of visual communications as a commercial photo major. I was accepted and managed to finagle my way out of having to attend a 5th year of schooling by taking classes for my program before I was even accepted. My whole background in photo has basically revolved around the theme of me making things happen for myself, despite major obstacles. I still don’t like being told what I cannot do.

Me: Let’s talk a bit about your series “Dumped.” How did the idea come to you?

Meg: I think Dumped was induced by a dream. I keep scraps of paper next to my bed when crazy thoughts need to be accounted for.

Me: What’s the process like for shooting “Dumped”? How do you recruit the “dumpees” and how many dumpings does it usually take for you to find the perfect shot?

Meg: The subjects in this series were my ever-willing friends. I promised them food and booze and a hot shower and they obligingly humored me. This series is proof of one of the many reasons I love photography and the things you can talk people into doing for the sake of a photo. There was only one “take” per person as it is messy business. I’d say about 50 frames per “dump” which happened in mere seconds.

Me: I’d like to permanently volunteer to be a dumpee anytime you need one. What would you dump on me… and is there a shower in your studio?

Meg: Most of the participants chose what they wanted to have dumped on them—as long as it was in the realm of being liquidy. A couple things I wish we would have done that day were fake blood (a la the movie “Carrie”) or goldfish & water.

And, yes, I have a shower.

I was planning on doing a 2nd round of Dumped, but ultimately decided against it (for now), for fear of being pigeonholed or too gimmicky. I also recently learned from a friend (who is a sex blogger) that these photos are huge in the fetish community of “sploshing.” This explains the incredible amount of traffic my website has been received and my having gone over my allotted bandwidth as of late. The internet is an incredible place…

Me: The thing that strikes me most about it is how absolutely happy everyone looks. What is it about capturing that moment of joyous shock that appeals to you?

Meg: The thing was that everyone asked me how he or she should react. I had no idea how everyone would respond and told them that I thought they just would react. I think the novelty of how random and unusual the whole ordeal was what contributed to the fun of it. The moment of reaction is what interested me, I suppose.

Me: In your series “Beautiful Decay” you document abandoned and dilapidated spaces. Like the title of the series hints toward, what is it about this decay that you find beautiful?

Meg: The abandoned school in question in this series had SO MUCH amazing furniture and books that were just left. It looked as if they had had a fire drill in the 80s and never came back. I was able to liberate 2 huge boxes of turn-of-the-century antique glass slides that are absolutely beautiful. (I’ve started scanning them and have attached a few of my favorites.)

It’s a battle between being appalled at how we, as Americans, lay things to waste and how disposable we view everything in our lives. On the flip side of this, it was amazing to see how quickly nature has taken over—and that is what I find beautiful. Another example of this is beautifully executed in the movie directed by Alfonso Cuarón, “Children of Men.”

Me: This is a pretty broad question, but I want to throw open the door and see what pops into your mind first. What inspires you?

Meg: Right now I am super inspired by the past. Right now I am reading a ton of historical fiction—specifically about Brooklyn (where I currently live) and Coney Island (which I’ve obsessively documented until it’s tragic demise this year.) I love the layers of this city and you can see it everywhere, but I am more interested right now in the actual stories behind the buildings, etc. I am planning on going to the NYC Department of Records soon to peruse their collection of Tax Photographs.

Me: If you could go anywhere in the world right now, without worrying about cost or family or personal commitments, where would it be and why?

Meg: Probably Japan. Because I’ve always had an interest in their pop culture and love the dichotomy of super modern versus super old in such a small amount of space.

Me: Aside from the work you’ve already done, if you could photograph any person or thing, past or present, real or imaginary, what would it be and why?

Meg: Björk. Hands down. I am inspired by her music as much as I am her collaborations with other musicians and artists alike. She seems completely open to the entire creative processes.

Me: If you could have anyone, living or dead, be a subject for “Dumped” who would it be and what would you dump on them?

Meg: Björk again. Because I’d love to photograph her anyway and because I think she’d do willingly do it. I’d probably dump some sort of sparkly paint on her…but I’d be more curious to see what she would suggest.

Me: Of all your work, do you have a favourite shot? If so, will you tell me what it is?

Meg: I have a favorite first shot. I must have been a junior in high school, with  a roll of tri-x, and my dad’s canon from the 70s. My best friend at the time, Andrew, and I were driving around a state park in my hometown (of Akron, Ohio) and got out to walk around a creek. I remember the instant of focusing on him as the clouds parted and that ray of light falling on him exactly. It was serendipitous and magical and could possibly be the moment I knew I wanted to do photography for the rest of my life.

All Images © Courtesy of Meg Wachter

s+c interviews: liz wolfe.

I’ve really pumped to announce the kick off to a whole new feature on shape+colour: s+c interviews. Whenever I write about artists and designers I always have way more questions than I can find the answers to. Since shape+colour itself is a dive into creativity, I want to find how these outside-the-box creative people find their inspiration, how they stay creative and vital, and how they feel about their own work.

I’m going to be tracking down (harrassing… possibly stalking) my favourite artists from the site to find out a bit more about what makes them tick. I’m aiming to dip more into the nature of creativity as seen by creatives themselves and to be inspired by the different routes people from all over the world take to one main goal: making something astounding and beautiful for the rest of us to be taken away by.

Yellow Shoes and Sardines © Liz Wolfe

I’m crazy happy to start s+c interviews with one of my absolute favourite photographers and frequent topic of conversation on shape+colour, Liz Wolfe…

Me: Tell me a bit about your background. How did you discover photography?

Liz: I’m originally from Saskatchewan. I was born there and spent most of my childhood there until I was 17. I first discovered photography when I was a child. My parents had a manual camera and were into printing their own family photos in the tiny darkroom they set up in a closet in our basement. Because our winters were so long and cold, my brothers and I were always going crazy trying to find stuff to occupy us. So it was only natural that eventually that mysterious room in the basement began to beckon. And it was there that we were introduced to the magic of black-and-white photography. My mom taught me how to use her camera and my dad showed me how to make prints. And that was it; I was in love.
As a teenager, I became totally obsessed with the medium, often driving into the middle of nowhere in -40 degree weather to get my “perfect” shots. It’s funny when I look at these photos because aesthetically the images are so different from the kind of work I am doing now. But the playfulness and the ridiculousness, those elements are definitely there.

Baby Octopi and Green Flowers © Liz Wolfe

Me: An on-going theme in your work is the visual interplay of things we commonly consider pretty – flowers, sugar, candy – with things we stereotypically consider “gross” – chicken feet, octopi, blood. What is it about this juxtaposition that inspires you so much?

Liz: I’m not entirely sure, but I think it has something to do with commercial imagery and the way our generation has been forced to adapt to the commercialization of every aspect of our lives. Possibly this is something every generation feels, but there is a part of me that thinks our generation is the first to experience commercialization in its totality.

Like many people, I am instinctively drawn to the allure of commercial imagery and find it almost impossible to resist. Yet there’s something undeniably repulsive about the gloss and the falsity of these images. It’s this darker side that I am interested in exploring, and for me it seems natural to do this through juxtaposition.

Me: Another element of your work is taking foods we normally associate with celebrations and happiness – cupcakes, popsicles – but then telling a visual story with them that, to me, leads us to believe that all is not as happy as it might seem. What is it about this multi-layering, of something sinister lying just beneath all that sugar and colour, that you find intriguing?

Liz: The images you’re referring to are part of a new series I am working on called “Happiness is Contagious.” The North American obsession with achieving that elusive state called happiness fascinates me. And this is, in a very general sense, what I’m delving into with these images.

When I’m working, I try to avoid over-thinking the concepts underlying the images (if these even exist), mainly because I am incapable of thinking and acting at the same time! But also because, for me at least, thinking about my images on an intellectual level negatively affects the process of creating them. Conceptually, I am more interested in starting conversations than participating in them. When I’m planning images, my goal is to turn my mind off and operate entirely on my instincts. It’s like wrapping myself in a dream, where bizarre associations suddenly make sense. There’s a lucidity I rarely feel when I’m thinking in the conventional sense, and this is pure freedom for me.

Happy © Liz Wolfe

Me: You recently re-vamped lizwolfe.com and introduced an online store. Though art is obviously priceless, some artists choose to charge higher prices for their work, excluding some fans from being able to purchase it. You’ve started some of the work in your store at very attainable prices. Is it specifically important to you that your work be available to a wider range of people? How do you balance the purely creative evolution of your work with the goal of making a sustainable business out of it as well?

Liz: The open edition prints on my website, I created these for people who aren’t into collecting art but who want something for their walls. I love the idea of mass production and making art as accessible as possible, especially for people who don’t have the money or the desire to invest in original art. When I issue limited-edition photographs, they are expensive, and this helps me to keep creating new work.

Me: You have a young son. Besides what I’m sure are some pretty crazy time management issues, has being a parent affected or inspired your work in anyway? Do you aim to foster creativity in him, and if so has that affected your own?

Liz: Having a son has affected my work in many ways: I work faster, plan more extensively and take full advantage of the time I have. Plus, it gives me the opportunity to hang out with someone who is more interested in discussing the aesthetics of cake than I am.

My son is only two, so right now I’m doing less in the fostering creativity department and more in the discouraging him from putting sandwiches into my film scanner department. My approach has been to let him explore his world without too much parental scrutiny. It’s possible that creativity will naturally develop in this type of environment, but it really doesn’t matter to me either way. I’ll be happy with whatever interests he develops and I hope he will feel free to pursue them with passion. And keep his sandwiches to himself.

Me: This is a pretty broad question, but I want to throw open the door and see what pops into your mind first. What inspires you?

Liz: The kind of things that inspire me, they generally have nothing to do with art or creativity or consuming culture. Geographic isolation inspires me; the feeling of insignificance that levels all humans under the weight of a prairie sky.

I’m also inspired by random encounters with people in the city, overheard conversations, spontaneous reactions, the micro-dramas of humans playing out in the streets.

I prefer rawness over sophistication, candy stores over art galleries, everyday occurrences over momentous events.

Me: If you could go anywhere in the world right now, without worrying about cost or family or personal commitments, where would it be and why?

Liz: I know it sounds crazy because there are so many incredible places out there, but I would go to my former home in the prairies to sit on the hill from my childhood and watch traffic passing on the freeway. Not as an exercise in banality or some sort of ironic act, but to experience the slowness and the incredible presence of the sky.

Me: Aside from the work you’ve already done, if you could photograph any person or thing, past or present, real or imaginary, what would it be and why?

Liz: I would love to create an entire human-sized world out of candy and photograph its slow decay. It’s one of the most beautiful things I can imagine.

Hand Punctured With Candy Stick © LIz Wolfe

Me: One of my favourite pieces, and the current image on your new homepage, is 2005’s “Hand Punctured With Candy Stick”. To me this image is a great embodiment of your style and the mood you create. I would love to know the inspiration behind this shot.

Liz: I created this image as a response to the way violence is portrayed in pop culture, especially in shows like CSI.

Me: After spending so much time working with candy, do you have a sweet tooth?

Liz: I used to, but now that I work with sweet stuff all the time I almost never eat candy anymore. It’s sad. I think I was a much more exciting person with large amounts of refined sugar rushing through my bloodstream.