ON LOCATION. AROUND THE CORNER. AROUND THE WORLD.

My SpaceBy Brent Winebrenner

By definition, most writers write - at

least some of the time. By desire and

design, most photographers almost never,

ever, ever write - with good reason.

And, why should we? If a picture is

worth a thousand words then why should

we have to struggle to craft scintillating

prose when others who really like to

write can do it better. Instead,

photographers should be out shooting,

creating entire libraries full of visual

literature, pounding out thousands of

digital words at a time.

I clung to this handy rationalization

for months in an erstwhile successful

effort to avoid the discomfort of actually

starting this newsletter. And, I’m pretty

confident I could have procrastinated

into perpetuity (and been perfectly happy

doing so) if a TARP were still a canvas.

But it is not.

The freelance photographer’s

“idyllic” life of carefree abandoned has

been shattered by the confluence of

powerful new technologies, competition

and the economic uncertainty.

Things came to a head the day the

credit default swaps and mortgage

backed securities pushing us to the

precipice of the Global Meltdown. Now

creatives have had to run faster, jump

higher, throw farther and market harder

in the new media to stimulate their own

personal economic recoveries. This

newsletter is a part of my personal

stimulus package.

I’ll admit that I not happy cooped up

in my office searching for adjectives while

my heart beats to the steady, relentless

rhythm of a blinking cursor on an empty

screen.

Outside, a big winter swell is coming

in and I can hear the surf pounding on

the beach. There are pictures to be

taken and here I am, at a total loss for

the words, any words, with which to end

this messy muse. Its no small wonder

that Hemingway drank and Poe went

mad. “Nevermore.”

I’ve got to get out of here and take

some pictures before the Raven gets me

too. But, I’ll be back at it tomorrow,

forevermore chipping away at the New

Normal.

When these newsletters are finally

done, I think each will contain a little

personal rant, a short column on the

creative process, a blurb about a featured

project and a portfolio page of pictures.

I hope you’re by what you see and

rest assured, I’m going to learn to enjoy

this, unless it kills me first.

Brent Winebrenner

Jan 12-15, Feb 3, 29, Mar....

ON LOCATION. AROUND THE CORNER. AROUND THE WORLD.F

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“Artists are influenced primarily by

other artists, which means that

standard art history can sound like

a baseball broadcast of an infield

play: Velazquez to Goya to Picasso.”

Arthur Lubow

Creativity researcher Mihaly

Csikszentmihalyi and others argue that

the kind of really intense, high octane

creativity that moves a culture cannot

exist outside of three part structure, the

foundation of which is the domain. A

domain is another word for a discipline

like physics, music or photography that

has rules, procedures, culture and history.

The second element in the structure

is called the field. The field is made up of

people and institutions like curators,

educators, critics, universities, museums

and associations who act as gatekeepers

and kingmakers.

Finally, there is the person, working

either individually or in collaboration with

others. By building on what already exists

within in their domain, people generally

nudge the discipline along in miniscule

increments. On rare occasion, the change

is so radical that an entirely new domain

is create. For example, Freud ripped

psychoanalysis from neuropathy and

Galileo’s work laid the foundation for

experimental physics.

Csikszentmihalyi’s most demanding

definition of creativity says that “creativity

is any act, idea, or product that changes

an existing domain, or that transforms an

existing domain into a new one.”

This definition really raises the bar

and creates some interesting “truisms” for

anyone who wants to excel.

First of all, if you want to be a

creative influence, you have to be

grounded in the culture of your domain.

One way or another, through formal

education, experience or a mentorship,

you have to become knowledgeable.

Second, after achieving a thorough

grounding in your domain, you have to be

willing to push against established

boundaries to break new ground. You

have to work hard, explore and take risks.

Thirdly, and most interestingly, it is

possible that people who are considered

the creative “luminaries” in your domain

may not be any more talented, brilliant or

even creative than you are. But, for some

reason, the gatekeepers have chosen to

embrace their work. Over time, merit

trumps mediocrity. But, the initial

acceptance can be influenced by luck,

connections, timing, persistence or the

efforts of a good publicist.

Fortunately, time proves to be the real

crucible by which real creativity is

measured. But, you have to get it out

there first.

This is the first in a series of excerpts from my

master’s thesis on creativity.

ProcessO

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Starting a magazine can be a real adventure in good times.

In this turbulent publishing environment, it is nothing short of

audacious. So, I was curious when asked to shoot the features

for the first issue of Upwardly Mobile, a new shelter magazine. I

was hooked when I met Toni Gump, the publisher, who told me

she was assembling a team of freelance editors, designers and

writers to create a quarterly devoted to talking up the “cool”

side of pre-fabricated houses and mobile home living.

It was clear that Toni had fallen in love the idea that

manufactured homes were an affordable, and sometimes

surprisingly elegant solution, to the higher costs and bigger

footprints of traditional housing. She was on a righteous

mission and her enthusiasm was so contagious that I signed up

to help light the fuse on her Upwardly Mobile rocket. So far, its

been a very trippy, fun-filled ride, full of the expected

challenges and and the unexpected serendipitous moments

enjoyed by any new enterprise.

The first assignment, shooting a rural triple-wide in Central

Coast wine country, blew away any lingering “My Name is

Earl” skepticism that I had about mobile home living. The

owner’s had created out a wonderful house for themselves and

their active family, using the money they saved to upgrade their

country lifestyle.

Toni’s enthusiasm and her team’s hard work have filled

Upwardly Mobile with stories of people who really love the living

spaces they’ve created. The assignments have been great,

introducing me to the kind of folks who turn convention upside

down, ignore the naysayers and pursue uncommon possibilities.

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Projects

ON LOCATION ON THE WATERPictures