Portraits of a Craftsman - How Curiosity inspires my Photography

I love taking long walks and drives in my pursuit of photography - often my best work comes from making photographs from unplanned journeys. Sometimes on such trips I have a plan to document a place or a building but it’s good to be open to unexpected experiences and having this mindset provides me an insurance policy that I might come back with experiences and/or photographs or at least the inspiration to return when conditions are more conducive to creativity.

On one such journey I pulled into a rest spot on the side of the road for some lunch and spotted an interesting character sitting on a park bench eating his lunch. His wispy hair and big beard grabbed my attention and as I walked past he said hello and we had a chat that ended up turning into an hour long conversation. I noticed what looked like a bronze snake on the table beside him and I asked him about it, to which he replied that he had made it he made it and he brought it with him in order to keep the real snakes away! It didn’t seem to worry the magpie that was hopping over the table more interested in his lunch! In our conversation he said he had been a blacksmith all of his life, beginning his career as a teenager and how he still creates and makes things to this day. I asked if I could take some photographs to which he obliged. It was a really bright sunny day so I looked around for a shady spot and captured some portraits of him under a big old tree. I said I would have to come back one day and make some portraits of him in his workshop.  

I remember having no idea what to expect of his workshop and where I would be making photographs but like I said earlier - these unplanned journeys are exciting to me, you never quite know where they will lead you. Many months later and with the idea of what his workshop might be like and opportunities to capture portraits of him sparked my imagination I met up with him to tell his story through photographs. The sheer size of his workshop was immense and beyond what I could ever imagine! I normally like to have a walk around and check out photogenic locations and where the light is for making photographs. I remember pulling into the driveway and as he came out of the workshop he leaned on the front door and I could see that was an excellent opportunity. I asked him to stay right there whilst I got my camera and within just a moment of saying hello I had captured my first portraits. I remember thinking that the shed we were in was the workshop - full of tools and machinery, to which he replied, ‘‘you haven’t seen the start of it yet!” He wasn’t wrong - as he showed me into the next room there was every conceivable tool imaginable. What I found amazing was that he not only created works of function and beauty as a blacksmith, he made every single tool himself that was required for being a blacksmith. The rambling spaces and the sheer amount of assorted machinery and tools were testament to his dedication to his profession as a blacksmith. These conversations inform the photographs I envisage making, and hearing his story and seeing the spaces provides me with ideas on what I think will make interesting photographs on their own, which can also be brought together as a series that provide a narrative.

I love these informal chats with people as I get to hear their stories of life, and as I am listening it provides me with ideas of making portraits of them. Many years ago, early on in my photographic career and pursuits, I would never have dreamed of creating portraits, but these days I find people, especially the older generation, fascinating to capture. When I hear their stories they provide a wonderful perspective of a life lived and continued to be lived and I find there is something very calming about the actual process of listening. As we walked back outside from the blacksmith workshop I observed a large woodpile. He casually mentioned that he still collects, cuts and transports his own firewood. This provided me with the source of inspiration to make some environmental portraits before we returned to the blacksmith workshop for some more further portraits.