Bangkok In A New Light
Although it felt dull and uninspiring to me at the time, I still took to the streets with my newly gifted camera. It was maybe late 2011 when my brother handed it to me and said "go clear your head".
It's not like I'd ever done photography before or even shown an interest. People often find their passion hits them on the side of the head without warning.
It's rarely innate. At one point in your life you need something. You're not sure what. And then someone or some event drops it onto your path. That’s how street photography became my lifeline.
That day for some reason I grabbed the camera and aimlessly trod on out. I did need to clear my head.
And what started as a "cool-off walk" in the boring and familiar streets of Bangkok turned into a quest for a better understanding of life.
A Focus On Gesture
It's a funny thing that happens when you finally stop thinking. You're just there in the present. The constant background noise fades out and you're left with something bare. With time I gave myself a chance to learn from the masters of street photography that eliminating what's not important helps you focus on what is. It's a philosophy that applies to most aspects of life, but translated to photography it means we're better able to focus on the people and life around us.
Finally I realized with training that attention to the subject is what really matters and the new goal became to strip the equipment and its features down to the very essentials. The one function became to capture and make sense of what is right in front of us.
I tend to stare at people. Not in a creepy way (at least I don't think it's creepy). The way they hold their hands together, their stance, the way they stare off in the distance in a seemingly deep introspective query. Some gestures leave us with questions and wonder, others relay compassion. They really become a window into the other.
As a record of my observations I try to empathize with the people I take photographs of. We all have a unique perspective to bring into each experience and somehow through photography I feel like I can understand myself and the world around me better.
PUBLICATIONS
Platform 10 Photobook - my first monograph, Published by Peanut Press - New York, USA 2016
Photograph included in “100 Great Street Photographs”, a book authored by David Gibson, published by Prestel in 2017
A three-page spread feature in Underdogs Magazine Issue 16, 2017
Fine Dae Magazine Chiang Mai, 2017
Featured in Esquire Thailand Magazine, 2017
Featured in GQ Thailand Magazine, 2017
Series of photographs included in “TCDC Creative District” published by Thailand Creative & Design Centre - Bangkok, Thailand 2016
Photographs included in “Not Even Bro”, a Street Photography zine published by SixX9 Zines - Vancouver, Canada 2016
EXHIBITIONS
Solo Exhibitions:
"Platform 10" - Art Mai Gallery Hotel, Chiang Mai, Thailand (April 6 - June 6, 2017)
"Platform 10" - Sofitel Sukhumvit, Bangkok, Thailand (December 14, 2016 - February 12, 2017)
“Hua Lamphong Train Station” - Wine Loft, Bangkok, Thailand - 2013
“Life is an Act” - Exhibit Cafe, Bangkok, Thailand - 2014
“Life is an Act” - Neilson Hays Gallery, Bangkok, Thailand - 2014
“Life is an Act” - The Attic, Bangkok, Thailand - 2014
Group Exhibitions:
Group Exhibition with Street Photo Thailand at BACC in 2018 (part of Photo Bangkok Festival)
Hua Hin Photo Festival (w/Street Photo Thailand) - Hua Hin, Thailand - 2016
“The Duet” (w/Street Photo Thailand) Goja, Thailand - 2016
TCDC Creative District (w/Street Photo Thailand) Bangkok Postal Office - 2016