I can see myself as a very old man in a terrific wheelchair. Only, I won't be photographing the tree outside my window, the way Steichen did. I'll be photographing other old people.
Interpretation
The quote reflects on the aging process and the value of capturing real-life moments in art as one grows older.
In this quote, Richard Avedon expresses his vision of aging and artistry. Unlike the photographer Edward Steichen, who captured nature, Avedon envisions himself focusing on the lives of other elderly people, emphasizing the beauty and depth of human experience in old age. His statement highlights the significance of personal connections and storytelling through photography as one navigates through life’s later stages.
In practice
During a photography exhibit, this quote can be used to introduce a series focusing on portraits of elderly individuals.
There's always been a separation between fashion and what I call my 'deeper' work. Fashion is where I make my living. I'm not knocking it. It's a pleasure to make a living that way. It's pleasure and then there's the deeper pleasure of doing my portraits. It's not important what I consider myself to be, but I consider myself to be a portrait photographer.
I am, and forever will be, devastated by the gift of Audrey Hepburn before my camera. I cannot lift her to greater heights. She is already there. I can only record. I cannot interpret her. There is no going further than who she is. She has achieved in herself her ultimate portrait.
I never wanted to be called an artist. I wanted to be called a photographer.
Photography has always reminded me of the second child.. trying to prove itself. The fact that it wasn't really considered an art.. that it was considered a craft.. has trapped almost every serious photographer.
My portraits are more about me than they are about the people I photograph.
When you pose for a photograph, it's behind a smile that isn't yours. You are angry and hungry and alive. What I value in you is that intensity. I want to make portraits as intense as people.
For both art and the historical sciences are ways of experiencing in which our own understanding of existence is immediately brought into play.
Art lives on constraint and dies of freedom.
My work is always better when I am alone and follow my own impressions.
You can play a shoestring if you're sincere.
At different moments you see with different eyes. You see differently in the morning than you do in the evening. In addition, how you see is also dependent on your emotional state. Because of this, a motif can be seen in many different ways, and this is what makes art interesting.
I am a professional photographer because it is the best way I know to earn the money I require to take care of my wife and children.
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