Thursday evening, I spent the afternoon helping fellow student and friend, Peyton Fulford, photograph some more locations for her "Abandoned Love" series.
I feel like people have this general idea that art students fall on one side of a spectrum or another: incredibly snobby and serious or wild and strung out on all kinds of drugs to help their emotions show through their work. This is not the case, however. There may be a handful of people in the art world that fall into those two extreme categories. My reason for explaining that the stereotypes are incorrect is because as an artist myself, I fall into neither section. Also, as an artist hanging out with other artists, I know they do not fall into these categories either.
Peyton Fulford is one of those uncategorized artists. Yes, she is brilliant and has beautiful, deep meanings with her work. Her photographs evoke emotions in the viewer that sometimes we don't realize we have. Initially, if you saw her in person, you may be intimidated by her confidence and drive. If you took just one moment though to speak with her and see her warm smile light up her face, you'd know then and there that Peyton is a down-to-earth woman.
Of course, I already knew that. I've been taking classes with her for a few years now. I'd like to tell you what it's like to hang out and watch Peyton work.
The afternoon was filled with indie/folk music, Georgia sunshine and laughter. When we arrived at the location of choice, we would first determine exactly where and how to hang the banner across the building. After securing the sign in place, she would then head back to her car to get her large, heavy camera and tripod. Fulford sets up the equipment in multiple spots, determining the exact composition and lighting-- preparing for the perfect shot. It's not an easy task if there is any amount of breeze blowing because then the banner flaps and twists around, repeatedly needing to be straightened out. Once she finishes photographing in film, she then turns around and shoots a few digitally, either by her digital camera or iPhone. When one is done, the banner comes down and we're onto the next spot.
We were out for several hours. Yes, it was fun and I would definitely do it again. It can also be scary, unfortunately. Sometimes, if you're out in an area that may not be the best or may be kind of isolate or empty, people can use that to take advantage of your vulnerability. We experienced that, with a strange man pulling to the side of the road and coming over to us. Everything ended up alright, the man left after some minutes of awkwardness.
Art can be both gorgeous, exciting and terrifying all at the same time.
