Rock and Roll

Zeppelin anyone? Anyone?

When I started posting to Substack I intended to post once a week. And I did for about three weeks I think. It dwindled. Every 2 weeks, once a month. And now? I see my last post was Thanksgiving!

So here we go, it’s been a busy few months. Holidays, birthdays, constitutional crises. Photographically speaking it has been a period of growth and new work. And, I am finding new satisfaction in the work I am creating.

I went to Phoenix for a three day collodion plate workshop with David Emitt Adams at COMO art space. I am hooked, channeling Julia Margaret Cameron.

And I am gearing up do dive in to the process. I got a 6.5 x 8.5 camera that I am restoring and starting to collect the necessary darkroom supplies and chemistry.

Along with diving into wet plate I have been honing my portfolio by taking a class through CPA in Carmel with Susan Burnstine . I am only a couple weeks in but had a real breakthrough on my work and continuing to build a portfolio based on this artist statement:

Unseen is a photographic exploration of identity. Growing up in the Midwest during a time of conformity, I was caught between wanting to be recognized and wanting to keep my head down. While this work begins from a personal place, the questions it raises about who we are and how we’re seen are universal.

In this work, I photograph endangered public lands in Northern California, where I now live. I return to these places in low light, often at dusk or by moonlight, using the landscape as a way to reflect inward. These images are meant to be sat with, slowly considering ideas of belonging, perception, impermanence, and the subtle ways we exist and sometimes disappear into the world.

I am sure I will write much more about this later… So subscribe and stay tuned… Hehe.

It’s been a long time, ooh yeah. I’ll try to get back on track with more posts in the future. I am grateful that I can share my journey (don’t love that “journey” term but it seems to fit here.) here and build on community.

-Scott Leon