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[HORS_SERIE] On romanticism, fatherhood, art and love with Erik Madigan Heck
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[HORS_SERIE] On romanticism, fatherhood, art and love with Erik Madigan Heck
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GRÉGORY : We’re going to talk about your work, but I wanted to talk about romanticism. The first question basically is how did you go to photography? I guess that’s the very first question, and more than photography, because you told me you would not describe yourself as a fashion photographer, but more as an artist. How did you go into art, and why did you choose photography in the first place?
ERIK : Yes. So I began as a child, painting with my mother since probably four. We would paint almost every day in the basement watercolors, you know, just abstract in landscapes, and I would kind of copy my mother in what she was doing and learned quite young how to mix colors, how to see compositions. She used to take me to the museums every week, and so I was always surrounded with art. And then when I was 14, she bought me a camera because I was super into music, so I used to DJ, I mean, I still do a bit, but I used to spend all my money on records and I would be in my bedroom, you know, six hours a day, like just mixing records. And since she was, she was as like, you have sought out to the world and not just be in your bedroom. So she bought me a camera, I think, to try to get me out of the room. So we had this ritual every Sunday. She would take me out in her car and she would say, You know, here’s one roll of film, take whatever pictures you want. And that was her way of kind of introducing me to photography. So I think immediately it just made sense. The framing of the world with the camera came really easy, and I think, you know, psychologically, if something comes easy, you like it immediately because you’re like, Oh, I’m good at this. I also had very nurturing parents who were like, You’re very good at this, you know, so there’s the immediate positive reinforcement. So I started out shooting black and white 35 mm film, and then I would go to the darkroom in my high school, and I had a fantastic high school photography teacher who really took me under her wing and helped me learn how to develop prints. So it just became like kind of immediately became a passion. But at the time, I was also, you know, I was playing soccer, and I was engaged in many other things. But I think photography immediately made sense, and I knew that it was something I probably was going to do for the rest of my life. Yeah, I was quite young.
GRÉGORY : And so as you describe me, you don’t do only photography. You do different things. Where would you put photography in the different things you’re doing ?
ERIK : Well, I mean, so for many years, that’s all I did. So like 14 to probably mid 20s, I was very only black and white photography, which is funny because now I only see color. But I was like a student of photography as well, like just on my own. So when I went out to the bookshops and, you know, became kind of encyclopaedia of photography from the origins, like they take care of types through you know, the classics like Andre Katie in the United States. We had a Harry Callahan in the 60s, so I had this sort of encyclopedic knowledge, I think within two years of what photography at the time was considered until you get to Eggleston, which was funny. I really hated Eggleston and his approach to color, and I had this very sort of classical idea that photography had to be black and white and had to adhere to these sorts of decisive moment parameters in documentary, catching that perfect moment and these compositions that were very graphic, but really the whole time, I wasn’t passionate about photography as well. I really looked at painting and my love was always painting, like when I would go to museums. I wasn’t really interested in the photography exhibitions like I’d be more interested in contemporary painters like post-war painters. And I always wanted to be a painter, but I was very good at photography. And so there’s a sort of dichotomy in my mind of what I was good at and what I wanted to be. And so I think it was in graduate school where I started to experiment with color, but I really wanted to use photography to make paintings, right? Because also with photography, it’s immediate. You can spend time, obviously, with the color and person. But as opposed to painting where you have to invent photography, you can take and then invent on top of it and said that was the crux is like ten years of wanting to be a painter, being good at photography and then figuring out how to be a painter using photography.
GRÉGORY : I don’t know if you realize how reassuring it is to hear about one of the top photographer telling, Well, you know, I do for the review because I was not. I mean, I wanted to be a painter. But yeah.
ERIK : I’m also quite impatient. So like for me, you know, the idea of sitting down at the canvas for, you know, weeks to really get to the place that I could possibly get in like two days with the photograph as I go now, I’d rather just take the picture.
GRÉGORY : And sometimes when I look at your photography, but it’s also what people say instantly when they see your job, it makes you think of painting. It’s insane. Like when I look at the photography was like, but this is painting. And I don’t know how you do that. I mean, I’m wondering, how do you do that?
ERIK : Well, so essentially I always say that the photograph, if you’re speaking correctly about the medium. Like when I take the picture, that’s sort of just the blank canvas because the majority of my time is spent afterwards, a building color on top and on top and on top. And so, you know, the original image is very far from the final picture that I show. And so the colors are kind of invented on top of this place. And sometimes I’ll rearrange elements in the actual composition as well. But you know, there might be 100 layers of color on top of a picture. And it might take a couple of weeks actually going backstopping adding more color tweaking color way. So the process is pretty much identical to painting, except that with painting, you have to start from nothing with my process you start with a picture that existed in the world, but then it’s changed dramatically.
Description de l’épisode
Erik Madigan Heck is an artist that happens to be a photographer mostly known in the fashion industry.
I don’t do many episodes in english since it’s a french podcast but when you come accross such a personnality, it would be silly not to record the conversation. It happens in a small Swiss town at the occasion of the International Photo Festival of Olten (IPFO).
Erik is American, 37, father of 3 and is already awarded with a infinity Award by the prestigious ICP (International Center of Photography), named by Forbes in the 30 under 30.
Beside being a worldwide known photographer, he also is the founding editor of art and fashion publication Nomenus Quarterly., He is often considered as the most innovative and exciting young artists in contemporary photography. Just simply as that.
When I looked into Erik’s work, I was amazed because I’ve never seen anything like it. I was deeply touched and trouble. It was pretty clear that Erik was very sensitive and had a unique sense of creativity.
I love and practice photography myself and the first word that come to mind when looking at Erik’s photos is painting. The second one is probably “romanticism”.
In this episode, we are discussing how Erik want to push beauty in the world full of daily bad news ; how he thinks that utopia can only happens if you chose to look on the bright side.
It is a very insightful conversations, full of sensibility and vulnerability. Values that are so important to me and it feels good when it comes from a man perspective.
And as a cherry on the cake, he has a beautiful voice.
Hope you’ll enjoy the conversation as much as I did.
[HORS_SERIE] On romanticism, fatherhood, art and love with Erik Madigan Heck
/
GRÉGORY : We’re going to talk about your work, but I wanted to talk about romanticism. The first question basically is how did you go to photography? I guess that’s the very first question, and more than photography, because you told me you would not describe yourself as a fashion photographer, but more as an artist. How did you go into art, and why did you choose photography in the first place?
ERIK : Yes. So I began as a child, painting with my mother since probably four. We would paint almost every day in the basement watercolors, you know, just abstract in landscapes, and I would kind of copy my mother in what she was doing and learned quite young how to mix colors, how to see compositions. She used to take me to the museums every week, and so I was always surrounded with art. And then when I was 14, she bought me a camera because I was super into music, so I used to DJ, I mean, I still do a bit, but I used to spend all my money on records and I would be in my bedroom, you know, six hours a day, like just mixing records. And since she was, she was as like, you have sought out to the world and not just be in your bedroom. So she bought me a camera, I think, to try to get me out of the room. So we had this ritual every Sunday. She would take me out in her car and she would say, You know, here’s one roll of film, take whatever pictures you want. And that was her way of kind of introducing me to photography. So I think immediately it just made sense. The framing of the world with the camera came really easy, and I think, you know, psychologically, if something comes easy, you like it immediately because you’re like, Oh, I’m good at this. I also had very nurturing parents who were like, You’re very good at this, you know, so there’s the immediate positive reinforcement. So I started out shooting black and white 35 mm film, and then I would go to the darkroom in my high school, and I had a fantastic high school photography teacher who really took me under her wing and helped me learn how to develop prints. So it just became like kind of immediately became a passion. But at the time, I was also, you know, I was playing soccer, and I was engaged in many other things. But I think photography immediately made sense, and I knew that it was something I probably was going to do for the rest of my life. Yeah, I was quite young.
GRÉGORY : And so as you describe me, you don’t do only photography. You do different things. Where would you put photography in the different things you’re doing ?
ERIK : Well, I mean, so for many years, that’s all I did. So like 14 to probably mid 20s, I was very only black and white photography, which is funny because now I only see color. But I was like a student of photography as well, like just on my own. So when I went out to the bookshops and, you know, became kind of encyclopaedia of photography from the origins, like they take care of types through you know, the classics like Andre Katie in the United States. We had a Harry Callahan in the 60s, so I had this sort of encyclopedic knowledge, I think within two years of what photography at the time was considered until you get to Eggleston, which was funny. I really hated Eggleston and his approach to color, and I had this very sort of classical idea that photography had to be black and white and had to adhere to these sorts of decisive moment parameters in documentary, catching that perfect moment and these compositions that were very graphic, but really the whole time, I wasn’t passionate about photography as well. I really looked at painting and my love was always painting, like when I would go to museums. I wasn’t really interested in the photography exhibitions like I’d be more interested in contemporary painters like post-war painters. And I always wanted to be a painter, but I was very good at photography. And so there’s a sort of dichotomy in my mind of what I was good at and what I wanted to be. And so I think it was in graduate school where I started to experiment with color, but I really wanted to use photography to make paintings, right? Because also with photography, it’s immediate. You can spend time, obviously, with the color and person. But as opposed to painting where you have to invent photography, you can take and then invent on top of it and said that was the crux is like ten years of wanting to be a painter, being good at photography and then figuring out how to be a painter using photography.
GRÉGORY : I don’t know if you realize how reassuring it is to hear about one of the top photographer telling, Well, you know, I do for the review because I was not. I mean, I wanted to be a painter. But yeah.
ERIK : I’m also quite impatient. So like for me, you know, the idea of sitting down at the canvas for, you know, weeks to really get to the place that I could possibly get in like two days with the photograph as I go now, I’d rather just take the picture.
GRÉGORY : And sometimes when I look at your photography, but it’s also what people say instantly when they see your job, it makes you think of painting. It’s insane. Like when I look at the photography was like, but this is painting. And I don’t know how you do that. I mean, I’m wondering, how do you do that?
ERIK : Well, so essentially I always say that the photograph, if you’re speaking correctly about the medium. Like when I take the picture, that’s sort of just the blank canvas because the majority of my time is spent afterwards, a building color on top and on top and on top. And so, you know, the original image is very far from the final picture that I show. And so the colors are kind of invented on top of this place. And sometimes I’ll rearrange elements in the actual composition as well. But you know, there might be 100 layers of color on top of a picture. And it might take a couple of weeks actually going backstopping adding more color tweaking color way. So the process is pretty much identical to painting, except that with painting, you have to start from nothing with my process you start with a picture that existed in the world, but then it’s changed dramatically.
