January 23, 2024

Who might I become?

A little while ago, I wrote a list of things I ask myself when I’m deciding to take on a project or not. Now, a little wiser, there’s another question to add to that list – who might I become?

I’ve just finished reading, To Photograph is to Learn How to Die, where Tim Carpenter makes the (very convincing) argument of the relationship between our self and our ‘not self’ and how, overtime, this relationship changes who we are; our idenitity and how we behave, or, our ethics.

So, amongst all the reasons for prioritising one project over another (especially given our finite time on this Earth), thinking about the influence of a project on shaping who we might become feels valuable. It also feels terrifying. What if I choose the wrong project? Do I become a version of myself I never wanted to be? But, in that terror is also freedom; an acknowledgement of the privilege that we have a choice at all.

Whilst it may seem terrifying, it feels less terrifying than the opposite, which is to not think about this, take project after project and then wake up as a person you don’t recognise (or worse, don’t particularly like) in 20 years of doing what will be, by default, your life’s work.

Other observations
November 5, 2024

Consistent or resistant

Is my aversion to change about my wanting to be consistent? Or, am I actually being resistant and am I losing something because of that?

October 22, 2024

Critically unacclaimed

What do reviews really tell us about the work? Does it matter who’s reviewing?

October 15, 2024

Proper technique

If I’m learning a new art form, do I focus on technical correctness first or building an emotional connection with the medium?

October 8, 2024

The importance of mess

Physical art materials are messy and inconvenient. But isn’t that the point?

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