Taken in Stöðvarfjörður, Iceland.
First off, apologies on the lack of posts.Â
Itâs been a bit of a transitional period for the both of us. But getting back into it now. Iâm realizing more and more how crucial it is to have this place to develop ideas, reflect, and share. I donât believe any creative person should make work in a bubble, itâs hard to gain perspective that way. As I post more work on the site, I hope to get some insight from a larger audience. Not everything I make is going to be successful or even good at times, but I think itâs important to share the process.
I want to talk about the importance of storytelling.Â
Iâve had the opportunity to meet with several really motivated individuals in East Iceland, (Austurland), who are intent on developing the identity of East Iceland. Which is what Iâm really here to learn about and contribute to. How best to build and sustain cultural identity through visual means and community engagement. Through this I want to learn how to be a better storyteller, and how to provide a platform for others to tell their stories. Itâs such an integral part of this experience, and will take much longer than I am here for. Iâm hoping to gain as much as I can from the people invested in this area.Â
Yesterday I participated in a day long workshop with several members in the Austurland community focused on developing this identity. There was a lot of feedback as to what is unique about East Iceland; things like: the opportunity for slow travel, cuisine, materials specific to the region, wildlife, nature, as well as an individualâs relationship to the landscape here. Iceland is often marketed to tourists as a entire country to spend a short amount of time in, however, East Iceland is really another world, separate from RVK or the Golden Circle. Everything here is unique in its sense of place. I really believe in the aim of these workshops and collaboration to convey the special identity of this region.Â
As much as I am learning and observing, I really need to make sure I am pushing myself to make work, as much as I physically can, to parallel the experience. I donât want this to be some sort of solely observational holiday (though I am doing quite a bit of non-residency related work) where Iâm not visual recording/translating things. I want to push myself to be a visual storyteller, a documentor, an illustrative journalist. Iâll be publishing more work along those lines, as well as some daily list inspiration to help give myself a little more direction.Â
It continues to be a work in progress. Trying.Â
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