'I model because I enjoy it. I’d rather go for a walk barefoot in the forest than see the sights in the city. My own skin fits better than the latest fashions. When it comes to modeling, I would rather make people feel something than want to buy something. Keep it natural, keep it real. Steer away from the consumerism and appreciate what’s really there.'
I have used parts of the above quote in my previous posts on the work of model and photographer Warren Russell (DirtRoad). Whenever I spend time with his work, different parts of the quote and specific words ring in my head. Today, the words, make people feel continue to tickertape across as I write. I try to write something, hopefully meaningful for every artist that I feature and every set of images I share. The reason is sort of captured in those three words.
The Internet is overrun with sites, blogs and especially tumblr's that discourage words (and thought) and instead, encourage viewers to use the images, and the people within them, for a quick, one time source of stimulation. The viewer is not expected to feel much more beyond that, in fact it is usually actively discouraged. Instead, the sites want you to move on, use the images then click on to page two, never giving what was on page one another thought.
There is nothing really wrong with this, on occasion.... We have all benefited from time to time. But, without a name for each face, and for each body; without credit for the artist behind it; without a word of explanation as to why an image was created or the reason it exists, our emotional detachment from the things we see and the bodies on our screens continues to widen. I like to think that the words I surround images with helps to lessen this, even just a little, in the same way Warren's words have increased my enjoyment, and feelings, about the images he creates.
In my first two features on his work, the focus was on Warren's self portraits, To The Woodshed!& Internal Intimacy. This time, the images are from another artist, Seattle Washington's BrilliantVita. Warren first shot with Eric from BrilliantVita a couple of years ago having connected through a Craigslist ad. There was a photography contest that Eric was working on a submission for and Warren's says Eric had a vision in mind of want he wanted to create and capture. About a year later they worked together again with what Warren describes as excellent results.
'Eric is a skilled photographer and he is professional and respectful. He makes you feel comfortable and usually puts on some good music while he works.'
