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.
Interpretation
The quote expresses the idea that artistry can be a means to support one's family.
Irving Penn highlights the connection between his profession as a photographer and his responsibility as a provider for his family. Through his craft, he not only pursues his passion for photography but also ensures the financial support needed to raise and take care of his wife and children, emphasizing the role of art as a practical means to fulfill family obligations.
In practice
During a speech at a photography seminar, I could use this quote to highlight the balance between artistry and providing for loved ones.
Sensitive people faced with the prospect of a camera portrait put on a face they think is one they would like to show the world very often what lies behind the facade is rare and more wonderful than the subject knows or dares to believe.
I've tried a few times to depart from what I know I can do, and I've failed. I've tried to work outside the studio, but it introduces too many variables that I can't control. I'm really quite narrow, you know.
I can get obsessed by anything if i look at it long enough. That's the curse of being a photographer.
My most persistent memory of stand - up is of my mouth being in the present and my mind being in the future: the mouth speaking the line, the body delivering the gesture, while the mind looks back, observing, analyzing, judging, worrying, and then deciding when and what to say next. Enjoyment while performing was rare - enjoyment would have been an indulgent loss of focus that comedy cannot afford.
'The Lion' all began with a picture of a faun carrying an umbrella and parcels in a snowy wood. This picture had been in my mind since I was about sixteen. Then one day, when I was about forty, I said to myself, 'Let's try to make a story about it.'
Everyday's a good day when you paint
I never finished the 'Large Glass' because, after working on it for eight years, I probably got interested in something else; also, I was tired. It may be that, subconsciously, I never intended to finish it because the word 'finish' implies an acceptance of traditional methods and all the paraphernalia that accompany them.
Thirst will parch your tongue and your body will waste through lack of sleep ere you can describe in words that which painting instantly sets before the eye.
The cut of a garment speaks of intellect and talent and the color of temperament and heart.
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