His pictures have something to say and I kept him under fire for a while. Thus, I wanted to find out more about him. Here is my interview with Michael J DeMeo.
Hi Michael, when somebody asks you what is your job, what do you answer?
I’m an artist, but I have a day-job.
I think you are one of the talented photographers of the new generation. I adore your language and the style of your pictures, basically I like them all. How do you pick your subjects?
Right now most of the people I photograph are people I already know in my day to day life. Some are close friends, others are more like acquaintances. Other times I’ll photograph people that email me, or that I find online. I usually like to shoot people that have an original but classic look.
Tell me about things or people – unrelated to photography – you are influenced by.
I love all kinds of art. But especially music, books, and movies. I’m obsessed with American literature- Hemingway, Faulkner, Steinbeck, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Henry Miller, Burroughs. I love movies. All kinds. Probably my favorite movies are by Martin Scorsese and John Waters. Music-wise I listen to hard bop jazz all day and all genres of electronic music at night. I don’t like too much guitar music anymore. I’m also influenced by fashion and all kinds of kitsch.
And what about the photographers that affected you the most?
It’s hard to narrow down my favorite photographers but the photographers that have had the biggest impact on me earliest on were Bruce Gilden, Nan Goldin, Wolfgang Tillmans, Helmut Newton, and Tim Barber. I can remember the first time I saw each of their photographs, and the way they made me feel.
I know you prefer analog to digital. What is your equipment?
I have a bunch of different cameras. I mainly use a pentax k1000, mamiya 645, olympus stylus epic, polaroid sx70, and a canon 40d. I’ve tried a whole gamut of cameras and it’s funny because these are basically the ones I started out with, and they work the best for me.
Describe your ideal day.
I could really go into fantasy with this question, but I’ll keep it rooted in reality. My favorite kind of days are waking up at 7am, going to the gym, shooting photos, and eating some excellent food. I like the simple things in life.
In your opinion, a great photo needs to express something new or, as Adams thought,”it needs to be the full expression of what you feel”?
I think a really great photograph should evoke some sort of emotional response with a hint of mystery or the unknown.
In her essay ‘On Photography’, Susan Sontag wrote what I think is the most beautiful and convincing definition of photographic art: ”photography is the inventory of mortality”. The author refers to the fact that people are there, in front of the camera, in a specific moment of their life and a second later they’re already dispersed, they’re changed and have gone on following their paths. Pictures, Sontag explains, ”state the innocence, the vulnerability of lives heading toward their own destruction, and this link between photography and death haunts all photographs of people”. In this regard, what is your point of view? Do you believe there is a dark side to photography?
I don’t really read a photograph like that all the time. I understand, I suppose, what she means. Every moment you live, the closer you are to death. So every photograph is capturing a moment of life lost. That’s a really beautiful and poetic way to look at a photograph, but that train of thought is not in my conscious head-space 90% of the time. Although the photos I find most beautiful are tender, somber moments. Of course there is a dark side to photography. There are people who use photography for very exploitative reasons, but that really isn’t art.
Talk about your fanzine No Thoughts.
No Thoughts is photography magazine that features a revolving cast of international photographers. We usually feature a mix of up and coming and freshly established photographers. We’re trying to blend the genres of photography with each issue: a mix of autobiographical, experimental, fashion, and fine art photography. We’ve released 5 issues thus far, and are currently working on #6 which is a sex based issue. It’s been really fun making the zine, being able to communicate with people all over the world using photographs, and distributing work by artists that may otherwise not yet have the opportunity to be published.
We’re thinking of expanding the zine to include original fashion shoots with independent designers, and interviews with bands and other visual artists; while still featuring new photo work by all sorts of people. It’s great making a fanzine, we’ve been getting an excellent response, but I’d eventually like to take it in the direction of being a bona fide arts and culture magazine, while still maintaining our unique vision. I’d love for it to become a full time job.
Some photographers, like Terry Richardson, stay faithful to their style; others, like Ryan McGinley, love to experiment and propose language and aesthetics completely different from their earlier productions. Do you like to experiment or prefer to establish your style?
I love to experiment with photography. I feel it’s very important to keep expanding your ideas, your techniques, to help your art to grow. It’s really great seeing the boom in analogue, low-fi, diary style photography but there can’t be much artistic growth if your skill-set isn’t broader than using point and shoot, or disposable cameras. Of course there’s exception to this rule, but they’re few and far between.
For which magazine would you like to work for?
Purple. I don’t care what anyone says I love Olivier Zahm’s vision. I think his magazine is the best thing out there right now.
