Matt Eich (b. 1986) is a photographic essayist working on long-form projects related to memory, family, community, and the American condition. He balances his freelance career, and the small book imprint he publishes under, with life as an Assistant Professor of Photojournalism at George Washington University. Eich lives in Charlottesville, VA with his wife and their two daughters. Also, if you've always wondered, it's pronounced EYE-ch.
How did you get to where you are today?
I started making pictures around the age of 10 in the wake of my grandmother's death from Alzheimer's disease. Growing up in isolated rural areas of Virginia and homeschooled for much of my youth, I've always found myself on the outside looking in. During high school, I played a lot of music, which was a good outlet for teenage angst. I studied photojournalism in college, became a father at the age of 21, and poured my anxieties about survival into trying to carve out a path in the dark woods of freelance photography. At this point, I've been a working photographer for nearly 17 years and I teach full-time (which is another way of saying I'm learning what I don't know, full-time).
This is a question that I don't encounter often (in life or in the creative process). I think there is a misconception that good art only stems from suffering. It can, but a better source is love ... love for the people around you, love for the world, love for the way that light shapes our perceptions of things. I used to be able to say that photography made me happy, now my relationship to the medium is tied up in complex feelings and anxieties, so it has become harder to find joy through photography. I still get excited about the medium, and it keeps pulling me back somehow.
What really makes me happy these days is time with loved ones, meaningful activities with my children, those times when a student seems to "get it", opportunities to freely create and express (in whatever medium), and rare moments of silence when my mind isn't racing.
Who or what inspires you?
Lately, it has been less photography (though I'm constantly looking, and frequently amazed). I've always drawn inspiration from music, but poetry has been taking a more prominent place in my creative process. I'm inspired by people who manage to create meaningful contributions to their field (whatever it may be) while also maintaining healthy relationships and those who can move through life with a sense of joy and wonder.
What’s the single best thing you’ve read lately/the best documentary or movie /or an experience you’ve had that most impacted you?
I enjoyed watching The French Dispatch with my daughter recently (she's a Wes Anderson fan), but that isn't exactly speaking into the space I'm trying to create from. The work I'm currently making is in response to a poem by Charles Wright, from his book of poems, Black Zodiac. Lately, I've also been reading Terrance Hayes, Tim Seibles, (along with other poets), and I enjoyed "The Triggering Town" by Richard Hugo. I find a lot of comfort when reading the words of Robert Adams.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Slow your roll, your self-worth is not tied to your creative output. Also, just because you care about photography doesn't mean photography cares about you.
How do you measure success?
For a lot of folks in the photo industry, I think success is measured by external factors ... did it win an award or get a big exhibition? Are you getting hired by that fancy client or making lots of money? External validation as markers for growth/improvement/success tend to be shortcuts to depression and heightened anxiety. If I'm looking for internal markers, a better guidepost might be am I surprising myself? Does the work being produced feel like my natural voice, or me trying to be something I'm not? Am I finding any joy in the process? Am I growing as a person, as well as an artist?
Attempting to stay sane, keep my head above water, spend less time on what doesn't matter / more time on what does, and keep making work.
What would you love to do that doesn’t involve your current craft?
Play piano, paint, write poetry with a visceral clarity.