Ricky Maynard
Saturday, July 11th, 2009
Graduate of the International Center for Photography in New York and winner of a number of international awards, Ricky Maynard is a photographer who I find influences the way that I perceive the world around me. His work as a documentary photographer and the articulate manner in which he communicates his story through his work and the conversation around his work makes him a compelling artist.
I won’t put any of Ricky’s photography directly into this post but you should get an idea about his motivations and photography through his 2008 floorwalk discussion at Proirua’s Pataka Museum. I particularly like how Ricky explains the difference between portrait as observation versus description versus response, and about the authenticity of the story.
Another video of Ricky worth watching is the Message Stick episode from the ABC titled Portrait of a Distant Land Pt 1. This involves his more recent work and precedes the well received Paris exhibition of Portrait of a Distant Land.
Thus you may have seen less of my aspiring photography work lately as I ask myself about my own story. What am I trying to say? Because I do have something to say. And while I would never in a million years put myself into the same frame as Ricky, its about more than just a picture. Its about the story and the response to place that defines my own experience…
