10.23.06
Underway
Have you ever listened to something about one hundred times before something just grabs you? I mean, just out and commands your attention.
I was driving along this evening, thinking about the artistic process. (I will firmly attempt not to be overly precious about this.) I was having a conversation last weekend with a buddy of mine, Matt Sigmon, and with a local photographer, Stacey Irvin, about some coaching I had gotten from Vincent Versace during a workshop.
I was talking to Vincent about “becoming” a photographer. He said, “Well, you already are a photographer, are you not?” I was in this workshop, and I had a camera, and I was editing the pictures, so technically — yeah. I had to concede that I was.
He said, “Everything that I do in here, and everything that you do in here is in service of your voice.” This was pretty much the first time I had heard things put this way.
We wound up talking about a frame of mind, more than a frame of film, or an exposure on CCD.
Which brings me back to Matt.
The song was blasting on the CD player as I was replaying my sessions with Vincent.
“When
You get beyond the door
That you couldn’t get past before
You know a brand new day
Just might be
Underway…”
Funny.
There is no door.
I about drove off the road.
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Matt’s album is called One Opens Up. It’s an autobiographical travelogue of self-development and self-discovery, which is seldom heavy, and often funny, and filled with some razor-sharp insight.* Ordering information is here.
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* and here it only took me about 100 listens to hear that. Enlightenment is a bitch.
