Author: Suzanne Sease

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Lars Schneider

So, the Happy Campers project … It really is a very personal project as I started it purely for fun, for documentation purposes and a to get a look into the world of other campers and their vehicles and ideas and thoughts about camping and a life on the road. It was in 2012 that I spent two months living and traveling out of a 1971 VW van with my wife Katrin and our just 8 months old son in the US Southwest (they are included in the series too ;-)) and whenever we pulled up to a campground, we looked around for interesting vehicles and people. In the evenings or mornings, I grabbed my Hasselblad H4D-50, and we took a casual walk as a family around the campsite. With our old van in the back and a baby on the arm it never was hard to start a conversation, and, in the end, I often took a few portraits of the owners and their rides. I naturally felt most drawn to other vintage motorhomes and the supersize ones that were just the opposite of how we were travelling.

To see more of this project, click here

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APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Clay Cook

Today there are over 30,000 commercial sex workers in Ajmer, India. They originate from marginalized segments of Indian society and are forced into the commercial sex trade due to poverty, gender inequality, lack of education, and limited skills. These women dream of escaping abusive relationships, moving their families to safety, feeding their children, investing in education, and giving their families a chance at a better life.

‘Stitched In Strength’ is a personal project that dives deep into the lives of women who have been championed through difficulty, supported through craft, and given a chance at a better life with the help of the award-winning non-profit, Anchal. My goal is not only to portray the impact of Anchal but to also shine light on the dedicated artisan women who give it life.

Artisans make 25%-100% more than they did before working with Anchal. This salary increase has led to 70% of the Artisans becoming the primary breadwinners of the family, the purchasing of first homes, and healthcare for themselves and their families. For 65% of artisans, Anchal is their first legal, recorded career. Anchal employs artisans but also conducts monthly workshops to teach skills such as entrepreneurship, leadership, women’s health, self-defense, and stress management that go beyond Anchal and promote further opportunities in their lives.

This project is an invitation for viewers to reflect on the power of social entrepreneurship, where creativity and compassion converge to create a lasting impact. The vision of Anchal extends far beyond a quilt. It symbolizes a thread of opportunity and community that can mend and enrich the lives of women worldwide.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Eric Melzer

I created ‘The Play Project’ to celebrate neighborhood play and good health during the isolation of the pandemic.  I challenged myself to build a photographic project around outdoor fun within a five-mile radius of where I live. That took me to the Peavey Park basketball courts in Minneapolis about a mile from my house.

I’ve shared these images with the players in both print and digital forms. The work earned a grant that I used to create a custom, unbound, tabloid-sized, poster book so players could share and display large images of themselves using inexpensive slip frames. I also created custom basketball cards and fine art prints for each player.

Images from this body of work have earned ten photography awards to date in Graphis, Communication Arts, IPA, American Photographer IA/IP and ASMP. The tabloid also just won a Gold award in the Graphis Design Competition.

I like pro sports and competitions like the Olympics because they give us heroes to look up to – but they are exclusive of most of us. The inclusive nature of neighborhood pick-up sports means everyone gets the ball, has fun, gets exercise, and builds friendships.

Photography really can build communities and help people feel seen. A quote from one of the players, Kenneth Walton, sums it up:

“Honestly when seeing the photos I felt a huge sense of accomplishment, community and pride. A lot of times when we play together outsiders look in with negative perceptions of us guys at the park. The pictures shine a positive light on the family we’ve built around Play!”

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Ryan Dearth

For a few years now, I’ve been very interested in the concept of human identity, specifically how people perceive and express themselves. The way we dress is often a reflection of how we feel about ourselves and who we want to be. Cosplayers take this to the extreme, literally transforming into comic book characters, superheroes, and video game stars as a way of exploring different facets of their identities.

I began photographing cosplayers during Comic Con in Denver as an exploration of the metamorphosis from ordinary people to fantasy, while still remaining human.

This is an ongoing project, and if you’ll be in costume for Denver’s Comic Con in 2025, please reach out. I’d love to photograph you.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Beth Galton

Memory of Absence

So much of who we are is passed from generation to generation—our genes, our behaviors—molded by our family. In 2017, my mother and father—who had not lived together for 50 years—died within three days of each other. I discovered many artifacts from my life of which I had no memory.

In this series, I combined botanicals with objects and photographs that I found, in order to convey a sense of memory and loss. The organic and volatile botanicals serve as a reminder of the ever-changing nature of memory and emotions—an unstable and profoundly unreliable process.

My creative process is to compose and photograph botanicals with the collected objects I have gathered from my mother’s home. I then print out the image and create yet another still life by layering more objects with the print and re-photograph it. This creates a further sense of the complex and layered emotions found within family dynamics.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Heather Perry

Kids in the Hood began as a selfish pursuit of a photograph a day to push me as a creative. I came to it when my son was about 7, and he ran with a band of characters from our neighborhood. As a homeowner, I’d first come to know them as agents of entropy: they’d let the hose run too long, fight and squabble, pilfer from our recycling bin.

Over nearly 10 years of photographing them, the slow magic of parental love seeped beyond the bounds of my kid and onto the kids I got to know through my time in their world. Silently, I cheered, feared, hoped and worried about each of them. When the test of time and circumstance made the project harder – tweens going separate ways, teens inside on phones, Covid isolating us all – the nature of the work changed. Perhaps the biggest hurdle to my ultimate goal for the project was the fact that my son no longer wanted to be photographed on the regular. I struggled with this as a photographer, but ultimately my motherhood won, and I set him free (mostly). I set them all free (mostly). In the end, it was the natural arc of youth that dictated when it was time to stop. What didn’t stop is my love and admiration for each of them.

Dylan’s optimism is legendary, and it just might restore his imagination for what his life can be. I hope that Seamus will remember that joy is as important as the rest of the countless emotions in his head. Perhaps the most captivating kid in this project, Casper has always been utterly authentic and fluid. It seems they are flowing still. My son, Finn, has always seemed just a little concerned. As he’s matured, he’s colored it to look more like apathy or ambivalence to keep the world at bay. I will keep urging him, with and without camera, to trust the world, and most importantly, himself in it.

They’ve all (mostly) graduated from high school now and have chosen very different paths from one another. Almost none of them talk to each other anymore. But I do think and hope that they will forever remember where they came from and the days they spent together.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Kremer Johnson

In our latest series, “Personal Space,” we delve into the evolving landscape of the modern workplace, inspired by a New York Times article on large companies encouraging employees to personalize their office spaces to draw them back post-pandemic. This project emerged from the profound shifts we’ve all experienced in our professional lives, highlighting the blend of home and office environments.

To bring this vision to life, we purchased a standard office cubicle, transforming it into five distinct conceptual spaces, each reflecting a unique story of personal identity and professional adaptation. Each image in this series serves as a narrative, portraying how employees reclaim their workspaces with creativity, making them not just places of productivity but extensions of their homes and personalities.

Our goal with “Personal Space” is to capture the essence of this transitional period, where the line between work and home blurs, and the cubicle becomes a canvas for personal storytelling. Through these images, we explore themes of resilience, adaptability, and the human need for connection and expression in the face of change.

This series invites viewers to reflect on their own work environments and the subtle yet profound ways in which they personalize their spaces. It underscores the importance of creating workplaces that foster not only productivity but also well-being and personal fulfillment. “Personal Space” is a tribute to the enduring human spirit and its capacity to adapt and thrive, even in the most unexpected circumstances.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  CJ Foeckler

I’ve been creating my Christmas card series since 2007.

It originally started as a joke to take a goofy portrait of myself in my single days to give to friends. It’s now turned into a serious project every holiday season that friends and family eagerly await the release of. We like to ‘out-do’ ourselves in terms of goofiness, quirkiness, or cleverness every year. It’s a goal of ours to create something that looks so real in terms of concept and execution, that if it were found on the street, someone would think that it was a real ad, band photo, or album art.

In the early years it was just me, then my cat Opie came along, followed by my wife, and now our two girls. It used to be easy to shoot something goofy, but now it’s become a fun challenge to create a realistic concept that works with all of our family members. Sometimes the concept is a loose idea that is worked out the day that we shoot and release it, and other times it’s figured out months in advance. This year’s concept is already worked out, we just need to purchase some clothing and props and shoot nearer the holiday season.

Last year’s card was the most complete to me in terms of realism and concept. We created a band, a song, album art, and merch. I recorded a simple song with my daughters, shot and designed the album art, and even had a merch site to sell t-shirts, mugs, and prints for family and friends.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist: Brian Molyneaux

I endeavor to realize and document beauty every day in the people that surround me wherever I am in this life journey. I am endlessly intrigued by people especially those that appear different than me and I rejoice in experiencing our commonalities. I celebrate unity, diversity, inclusion and love for everyone from every land and all cultures.

I believe that at its core portraiture is a somewhat intrusive act. It is my duty as the photographer to minimize that intrusion and to connect as honestly, thoughtfully and respectfully as I possibly can.

My latest personal project This Is What Jewish Looks Like started over a year ago through a desire of mine to represent people with truth and dignity. In this first phase of my project, I photographed 60 Jewish people of diverse backgrounds, race, and origins over the course of 3 days. This imagery was compiled in collaboration with Reboot and released as a Public Service Announcement on MTV, Paramount, Showtime, and their affiliated channels in celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month.

As with all of my work I am dedicated to finding that beauty that we all share as human beings floating around on this planet and I treasure our connections. I am only scratching the surface with where I am going next with this project of capturing diversity and inclusion in the Jewish faith. I welcome you all to follow along.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Josh Scott

Waterway is an ongoing project I started in 2009 just after buying a house on the Detroit River.

This series of images is focused on foggy mornings when things are quiet, calm, and surreal.

It’s a magical time to be on the river as threads of mist permeate from the water into the cool air leaving it a horizonless abyss, disorienting, removing any visual reference to direction.

It’s a time to explore, watch, and wonder as the breeze rolls blankets of fog into various tunnels of sight and the sun’s rays of light fight relentlessly to burn through the thick moist air.

Sometimes without warning the fog will just vanish leaving this mysterious place behind, and you’re left waiting for the next time the fog will play with your mind.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Dirk Anschutz

I am the father of a young boy and the only child of a single mom.  I’ve never met my dad.

I’ve been traveling around the US to take portraits of fathers and sons from many different cultural, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds. The different ways you can grow up in this country are astounding but many challenges for fathers and sons and the love between them are still the same.

The most basic role of a father is to protect his child while also allowing the kid to learn and grow by failing and getting hurt (but not too much).  It’s a constant balancing of preaching caution and abandon. On top of that there’s the expected guidance in inter-personal, scholastic, tech-related, sexual (dear Lord, no!), and financial behavior.  Plus installing a basic value system for dealing with a constantly changing world.  What could possibly go wrong?

Obviously, the father-son-relationship is incredibly influential for both.  Many times, a son will follow in his dad’s footsteps, and most dads have to make big life changes to accommodate their children.  Children might have to return the favor when their parents grow old.

I’ve tried to capture all of these things in my images.  But the glue that holds everything together is the love between a parent and a child.  It’s primal and fundamental.  If it’s not there for whatever reason, it’s probably hard to have a good lifelong relationship and it’s probably hard for the child to develop all the tools needed for a good life.  If the love is there, there’s a good chance it will carry father and son through all their difficulties and shortcomings.  Probably everybody who had a child can recall the feeling when your baby’s lying on your chest.  It’s glorious and terrifying all at the same time and it really changes your life forever.

Andrew & Homer, Brooklyn, NY, 2016

Fung Kit (Michael) & Wing-Hong (Andrew), Mountain View, CA, 2023

Jason & Chester, Jupiter, FL, 2018

Jonathan & Benjamin, Randolph, NJ, 2021

Wyatt & Mike, West Point, NY, 2019

Paul & Sonny, San Francisco, CA, 2023

Paula & Jonathan, Brooklyn, NY, 2018

Raul & Mario & Salomon & Ramon, Abiquiu, NM, 2021

Voodah & Rahmel, Brooklyn, NY, 2019

To see more of this project, click here

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Brian Pineda

In my images of Muay Thai kickboxers, I traveled to Bangkok, Thailand, capturing these athletes at various training camps and stadiums where they compete. This project captures the dedication, rich tradition, and vibrant pageantry of Muay Thai kickboxers, revealing a world where physical prowess and spiritual depth converge.

My fascination with Muay Thai stems from witnessing the unwavering commitment of these athletes. With my images I aim to show the rigorous training, the moments of silent contemplation, and the dynamic energy of these athletes. The fighters’ expressions, the intricate details of their ceremonial attire, and the intense action sequences all tell a story of honor, respect, and the pursuit of excellence.

This project is a visual homage to the athletes who dedicate their lives to mastering Muay Thai, preserving its legacy for future generations. It is an invitation for viewers to witness the beauty and discipline of this ancient tradition, celebrated in the heart of Bangkok.

The ceremonial rituals, the intricate details of their attire, and the dynamic movements in the ring are all captured to convey the beauty and discipline inherent in Muay Thai. This project is about the spirit and passion that these athletes have for their craft.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist: Dana Damewood

I grew up in the town of Wahoo, NE, population 2,000. I lived on the family farm and went to a one room school in the middle of a corn field. When we moved into town, I spent most of my time at my grandmother’s house. When she decided to move at the age of 97, I wanted to preserve the feeling and memory of the space that always felt like home to me. I remember the way the light came in through her windows and loved that nothing changed there as long as I can remember. I used my vintage Rolleiflex camera to photograph her home and some of the places around town that once seemed mundane but now have great meaning for me.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist: Geert De Taeye

In this photo series, I embark on a journey through inspiring locations that have the power to ignite the imagination. Guided by the virtual lens of Google Street View, I find myself wandering through the digital corridors of the world, embarking on endless virtual walks. Like a spy plane soaring above, I observe the landscape from different angles, seeking out wooded areas, specific architectural styles, and mysterious structures that exude a captivating atmosphere. These locations serve as the foundation upon which I build my narrative.

However, the initial allure of these virtual discoveries often gives way to reality when I visit them in person. Changes in the environment or alterations to the building itself can leave me disappointed. Just as Google Street View captures a moment in time, my photographs also freeze a specific instance. Yet, in their evolution, they reveal the loss or emergence of certain character traits unique to each location.

Every place undoubtedly harbors a story, a history waiting to unfold. These stories become the seeds for my photo series. Approaching with an air of naivety, I engage with the owners of farms, houses, and other inhabited places. My initial intention is to seek permission to capture their residence in an image. With a genuine curiosity, I ask them to share a personal story that resonates deeply with their home. An event or memory that has left an indelible mark and is intimately intertwined with their dwelling. It’s as if I am selecting a still from a movie, immortalizing a moment frozen in time.

The residents’ personal stories form the foundation of my images. Drawing inspiration from their narratives, I create and stage new situations that expand upon the truth, allowing room for interpretation and exaggeration. The resulting photographs, The Nearest Truth, are grounded in true stories yet venture beyond simple documentation. Nothing is quite as it seems, as I aim to create a world where reality and imagination blur together, beckoning viewers to question their own perceptions.

Through this approach, I hope to uncover the hidden narratives embedded within these captivating locations. The fusion of personal stories, carefully constructed staging, and the inherent magic of photography allows me to delve into the depths of human experience and create visual moments that resonate on multiple levels.

In The Nearest Truth, reality dances with the imaginary, prompting viewers to delve deeper into their own interpretations and immerse themselves in a world where tales are told through the lens of a camera.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist: Gabriele Galimberti

Half of all the firearms in the world that are owned by private citizens for non-military purposes are in the United States of America. The overall number, indeed, exceeds the Country’s population: 400 million weapons for 328 million people. This is not a coincidence, nor is it a market-related issue: it is rather a matter of “tradition” and constitutional guarantee established with the Second Amendment, ratified in 1791. This law reassures the inhabitants of the newly independent territories that their Federal Government would not be able, one day, to abuse its authority over them, and they are guaranteed the right to bear arms.

Two hundred and fifty years later, the Second Amendment is still ingrained in all aspects of American life.

Gabriele Galimberti has travelled to every corner of the United States – from New York City to Honolulu – to meet proud gun owners and photograph them and their weapons.
He has photographed people and guns in their homes and neighborhoods, even in places where no one would expect to find such arsenals.

These often-disturbing portraits, together with the accompanying stories based on interviews, provide an unexpected and uncommon view of what the institution of the Second Amendment really represents today.

To see more of this project, click here.

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Amy Selwyn

With mostly monochromatic hues and an aesthetic that hints at time’s passage, Amy Selwyn’s images invite the viewer into a realm where light and shadow dance in a slow and expressive duet. Each photograph, though distinct in its subject — a cathedral’s vault, a fog-wrapped forest, a solitary bathtub, and a church standing sentinel in a hazy expanse — shares a common thread of contemplation and consideration.

The cathedral’s arching lines reach toward the mysterious of the heavens. The forest scene, veiled in mist, speaks to the enigma of nature’s beauty, her paths less traveled, and the quiet introspection such a world elicits. The soft solitude of the bathtub, framed by morning light, mirrors the intimacy of moments when we confront (welcome?) the naked self.

Collectively, these works are a meditative exploration on solitude, reverence, and the search for meaning amidst the ephemeral. They stand, Selwyn believes, as odes to the quietness in life, the spaces between breaths, the silent stillness that defines our existence. Within these silent vignettes, the artist extends an invitation to pause, to reflect, and to find solace.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  Billy Childress

Back in the heart of Mount Airy, nestled in the warmth of Flat Rock Baptist Church, my roots run deep. Generations of my family found solace within the church walls. It had been a while since I last stepped into the space that cradled both my upbringing and the final farewell to my beloved grandmother. During the pandemic, this town is where I found myself inhabiting Grandma’s old house which is only separated from the church by a graveyard. In the midst of this small town’s struggles, I heard all the churches were closing and it really struck a chord with me because in the south, churches don’t close during hard times. This is where people want to be in a time of need, worry and uncertainty. For his congregation, Pastor Rusty Reed came up with the innovative solution of a Drive-In Church service. While in the parking lot listening on an AM radio station, parishioner’s cars would transform into havens where all could tune in to the pastor’s comforting words. As I embarked on documenting this extraordinary chapter in my town’s history, I chose to capture it in black and white photography knowing the monochromatic palette would deepen the importance of the narrative. To me, black and white supports and keeps the story quality timeless and deep by stripping away the distractions of color. My goal was to emphasizes some of the simple, raw emotions of the community bound by faith during their moments looking for unity.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram

The Art of the Personal Project is a crucial element to let potential buyers see how you think creatively on your own.  I am drawn to personal projects that have an interesting vision or that show something I have never seen before.  In this thread, I’ll include a link to each personal project with the artist statement so you can see more of the project. Please note: This thread is not affiliated with any company; I’m just featuring projects that I find.  Please DO NOT send me your work.  I do not take submissions.

Today’s featured artist:  The Rathkopfs

“Maminka,” the Czech term for mother, and my native language as a Czech immigrant now based in New York, serves as the emotional core of this project. Offering an intimate glimpse into my family’s lives, it chronicles the poignant journey of how my mother, and I reversed roles. In 2016, she became my caregiver during my cancer diagnosis, a role that later reversed in 2022 when she faced a stroke and cancer.

This photographic exploration delves into the shifts in our relationship– from patient to caregiver and caregiver to patient. The images captured the intricate dance of roles between children and parents and shows a candid picture of the challenges we confronted. How hard it is to care for a loved one, and how hard it can be to accept care. Amidst these tribulations, the project unveils the enduring strength of family love, a constant presence that can help transcend the hurdles.

“Maminka” also sheds light on the broader impact of multigenerational caregiving. In addition to my and my husband Jordan’s roles as caregivers in the “Sandwich Generation” (caregiving for aging parents and young children), our son, Jesse, has also found himself helping care for his grandmother as well. Spanning from Jesse’s early childhood to the most recent images in December 2023, the project captures the evolving dynamics. His instinct to assist in caregiving for my mother as she grappled with the lingering effects of recent illnesses, adds another layer to the intricate narrative. Ultimately, this project is a testament to the resilience of familial bonds, specifically the profound transformations that accompany the ebb and flow of caregiving roles across generations.

To see more of this project, click here

Instagram

APE contributor Suzanne Sease currently works as a consultant for photographers and illustrators around the world.  She has been involved in the photography and illustration advertising and in-house corporate industry for decades.  After establishing the art-buying department at The Martin Agency, then working for Kaplan-Thaler, Capital One, Best Buy and numerous smaller agencies and companies, she decided to be a consultant in 1999.  Follow her at @SuzanneSease.  Instagram