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The [ED]it // Edition 009. Curiosity
On following your nose, plus news and endnotes.
No cats were harmed during in the writing of this newsletter
Curiosity has been a guiding principle and the prime mode in which I live my life. I suspect it is the same for many of you who are reading this. I consider myself a life-long learner; new information and activities draw me in. I enjoy following tangents and going down “rabbit holes” of research. Some might say this amounts to distraction, but I disagree. Focus and depth are necessary bedfellows, but curiosity allows for ideas and principles to mingle, which is necessary for paradigm shifts. This why I dislike the phrase “Curiosity killed the cat”.
Curiosity led me into scientific research, with the desire to understand better how viruses – these tiny packages of genetic material wrapped in proteins and fat – could cause us so much harm. After meeting my wife, who was studying poetry at the time we met, I became more interested in the arts. This world of poetry, music, illustration, painting and much more, sparked a new exploration for me. It was photography, however, that I understood best, and it became my vehicle to visually interpret my curiosity about the world. I was not always best at focusing my photography practice, especially at first. I would run down “rabbit holes” that might have been better suited to another medium. But, with time, I started to understand what drew me to photography. I became curious about what photography could and could not do, both in itself and in relation to other visual media.
It has taken me a long time to recognise that my curiosity could allow me to have multiple, different strands of work and life, instead of one career or a narrow way of viewing my place in the world. Part of this is likely down to how those of us in a generation of a certain age were brought up to strive for a secure job and career. However, this realisation, and the curiosity to see if I could make my own business work, was part of what drove me to become freelance. I had to try it.
Typically, we might call those who cultivate multiple arenas within their lives renaissance people or polymaths. I learned a new term recently: multipotentiate – a person with the potential to pursue many things at once. While I don’t really like labels, understanding this about myself has allowed me to break free of the idea that we must pursue our ‘one true calling’ and be open to other opportunities.
It is only fitting that my curiosity, along with my previous professional experiences, have led to me working on an exciting, new project that I just couldn’t turn down. Unfortunately, I can’t say any more than that at the moment, but I am hopeful you will see the fruits of this work in due time. And I am very grateful to the person who saw the potential in me, recongised my innate curiosity and invited me into this opportunity.
So, if there’s one thing I would say to you, it is, “stay curious!”
// News
Farnham Craft Month / Surrey Artist Open Studios
October is Farnham Craft Month and to coincide with this they are running Surrey Artist Open Studios again. See the brochure here. I will be part of a group exhibition along with other members of the darkroom I use, Kiln Photo, which has a film developing space, B&W and colour printing darkrooms, digital suites with inkjet printing and a book-binding/mounting/framing/finishing room. And a group that makes full use of it all with varying photographic practices. As a side note we are open to new members so if you’d like to come and see the space get in touch!
I’ll be exhibiting work from the series Change at Jamaica, made during a year of commuting from Brooklyn to Long Island, always changing trains at Jamaica Station in Queens. Change at Jamaica represents a pause in that commute, a short time where I could stop and look, noticing the contrasts, the light and shadow. I’ll have prints for sale, framed and unframed. It would be wonderful to see you if you are able to pop along. I will be present stewarding on the first weekend, Friday 1st-3rd October, 11-5pm. More info, opening times and directions here.
Tice’s Meadow in Bird Watching magazine
Bird Watching magazine have published an article and pictures by me on Tice’s Meadow nature reserve and its potential sale. The October issue went on sale in shops on 23 September. I’m really pleased to have found a home for this photoessay, even more so that I got to provide both the words and photography.
Thank you to Matt Merritt for commissioning the piece and his editorial team for coaxing it into shape. Of course, the article would not have been possible without the cooperation and collaboration of the Tice's Meadow Bird Group and other people who visit the nature reserve and care so passionately for it. Thank you all for your time and patience with my camera and questions.
I’m very happy to have placed this work, and even happier to learn there may be some good news on the horizon…
Newsletter hiatus
Last month’s break will become an extended break while I take on some new work, as mentioned at the end of the main piece above. The scope of the work means that there are some things that will have to give in order to make space for it. One of those things is this newsletter – I just don’t think I’ll have the time I need to give to it for the next few months. There was more I had planned to write in the last three newsletters of this year, drafts of which are saved on my hard drive, but I’ve decided this will be the last one for now.
The [ED]it is not going away completely though, so please don’t unsubscribe! The break from writing it will give me some breathing room to help decide how it will look when it comes back. I have a few ideas that I’m excited about, which I’d be happy to share and receive any feedback on if you want to get in touch.
// Endnotes
Sean O’Neill’s essay in Gawker, Sally Rooney is Irish, is provocative, yes, but also very well written. It reminds me that in criticism, as in creation, there are many facets through which we can read and view things, but that often the layers of the authors own person can be forgotten. I enjoyed it very much.
Bill Shapiro, a former Editor-in-Chief of LIFE magazine, shares the work of a photographer that has caught his eye every Friday on Instagram. And what discoveries they are. In the middle of September, he shared photographs by Raúl Cañibano and the news that he has a new photobook out. Cuba is so loved and fetishized photographically that it is fantastic to see the eye of a native Cuban photographing his own country. Raúl’s website: https://raulfoto.visura.co/
Jonas Bendikson has really put the cat amongst the pigeons with his new project, Book of Veles. Read more about it and the fallout on the Magnum website. There’s been plenty of commentary on Twitter too. I’d to know your thoughts about all this in the comments.
Shirin Neshat is the latest PhotoLondon Master of Photography. The work presented was intriguing and sparked further conversations, something great art should do. I found her two-channel conceptual film installation for ‘Land of Dreams’ especially compelling. I was much less convinced by the Hollywood-ized version though.
I’ve had many a conversation and social media interaction with Jack Lowe on how we, as creatives, grapple with making a living. His latest post, ‘The True Notion of Patronage’ is worth a read and will inform how I move forward with my own practice and thinking for this newsletter and my work.
Lastly, the break I am taking will quite possibly include reduced activity on social media also. Whilst the new project is a big reason, Michaela Coel’s Emmy acceptance speech really resonated when she said: “Do not be afraid to disappear… and see what comes to you in the silence.” It’s time to block the noise out for a while.
Thank you for reading The [ED]it, I hope you enjoyed it. It will be back soon, most likely in the new year, so do forward this on to anyone else you think might enjoy it. Whilst I do say I am looking to reduce the noise, that doesn’t mean I want to block out meaningful interaction and discussion. If you have questions, comments, ideas, projects, sponsorship or anything else stimulated by this edition, you can reply to this email, or get in touch by leaving your thoughts in the comments or contacting me via email at edbrydon@gmail.com
Take care,
Ed
Thank you to my editor, Alli Brydon, who edits and proofreads (when time permits) this newsletter. Please note that any mistakes are mine.
If you are a new subscriber, please browse the archive for previous newsletter editions.
I was not paid for any content in this newsletter.
About me:
I am a photographer and writer available for commissions based near Farnham, Surrey, in south east England, just 45 minutes from London. I also regularly work in North Wales.
My more recent work explores personal connections to place, the land and natural environment, how each of those, and the connections between them, are changing.
In 2017 my ongoing project on people of North Welsh heritage in the northeast US was exhibited at Northern Eye Festival. I was subsequently awarded a commission from the Welsh Parliament in 2019 to make new work for exhibition around Wales in 2019-20.
You can find out more on my website here.
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