Sunday Edition: Brian Lav
PHOTOSNACK #555
Every Sunday, I contact photographers previously featured on PHOTOSNACK and ask them to send me their spontaneous thoughts, observations, reflections, or advice.
Today, I am sharing the message I received from Brian Lav
Brian Lav
ROAD TRIP - AMERICA
I was nine years old when a Kodak darkroom kit given to me by my parents planted the seed of what would later become my life’s passion. Seeing an image slowly appear on a blank sheet of paper in a tray of liquid was magic. I was then sidetracked for the next several years, growing up with the aimless direction of an adolescent. I graduated from college in 1969 and, to avoid having to get a job, I embarked on a cross-country trip with a borrowed Nikon camera that reacquainted me with photography and the special power of a camera.
In the early 70s, I had the opportunity to study with some of the West Coast masters. I had personal conversations with Wynn Bullock, I attended lectures with Brett Weston and Paul Caponigro, and I witnessed Ansel Adams creating some of his masterpieces in his darkroom. I left the West Coast with my head spinning with inspiration which prompted my second journey into America. Now armed with a view camera on a tripod, I set out in search of America’s grand landscapes.
In recent years, witnessing the unsettling polarization that’s been building in America, I set out on a pilgrimage to see if there were still remnants of the America I had visited and experienced some 40 years earlier. To be more up close and personal, I armed myself with a small handheld digital camera. Leaving behind the traffic jams, waiting for crowded trains, and bumping into people next to you with no personal interaction other than an occasional stare, I headed south for the first of my five separate journeys.
To date, I’ve traveled over 20,000 miles through 30 states, stopping at countless small towns along the way. Unlike the Tri-State area I’m accustomed to, the people were warm, welcoming, and had time to chat. They were curious about this traveler and why he was taking pictures. They enjoyed a conversation with a stranger and were happy to have their picture taken. Their pace of life was slower and more personal.
In Elkhart, Texas, I met a man pulling a wagon down the highway, and Roy, one of the few remaining cowboy ranchers in Alanreed. Peggy and Joe were at their vegetable stand in Ohio. They felt I looked tired, insisted I stop and rest, and fixed me a tomato sandwich. I met Yellowman on an Indian reservation in New Mexico, Tom the “Wanderer” in Illinois, Billy Johnson, tending his tomato patch in Tennessee, a family crabbing on the bayou in Louisiana, and Jerry mailing some letters in Wathena, Kansas.
A traveler is prepared for the sophistication of the big cities with the costumes of the hurried people attached to mobile devices and the suburban sprawl of strip malls. But after traveling the highways for many months and thousands of miles exploring America, photographing the landscape, and having the opportunity to meet these people, I can state with conviction, forget the airline, get off the interstate, take your time, and experience the seldom seen America”.
My journey was enlightening and reassuring.
Brian Lav was featured in PHOTOSNACK #510.
Sunday Editions connect you with photographers whose work you previously explored through PHOTOSNACK.
I want to reveal some authentic parts of the people behind the cameras. I don't ask them any specific questions. I ask them to share whatever comes to mind when they think about YOU, the newsletter readers. It makes their responses genuine and personal.
I hope you enjoyed today's Sunday Edition.
Until next time,
Tomasz
"and I witnessed Ansel Adams creating some of his masterpieces in his darkroom"
DAMN!