Pete Simpson: Photographer

History?

I have taught photography at different levels for over 30 years and had both group and solo exhibitions on numerous occasions.

What do you photograph?

I don’t photograph people, wildlife, street life or still life so I suppose the answer is ‘anything other than those’; broadly speaking I guess it’s landscape but my work is about  trying to make sense of what is outside by bringing it inside;  trying to find order in the randomness of everything through the act of photographing it.

I’m also involved in an ongoing photomontage project: ‘Case Studies’, Occasionally I break out into something different.

Views on photography?

I remember some years ago seeing an ad for a new camera by a well known camera manufacture and the strapline stated that using that camera would make you a better photographer!  It seems to me that the technology is becoming more important than the image and there seems to be a belief that using all this stuff will do the same thing.  I don’t think so, although it’s probably fair to say that some of it might help.  Might.

I believe that the image is more important and I know that there are many other artists who feel the same way, thankfully. However, using technology in a creative way is fine.

What about Photoshop?

It seems to have become a verb which implies that any image which is manipulated is somehow done for nefarious reasons. I use the word ‘manipulate’ loosely there.  I’ve been told that using Photoshop is cheating but people who say that don’t realise that it’s simply being used to replicate work done in a darkroom – a necessary part of the process.  I’ve also heard people say, ‘Well, that isn’t how it looked is it?’  Case closed.

At another level the software does open up other avenues of creativity of course but it has to be used with integrity (and caution}.  Often it isn’t and the results can be…unsuccessful, shall we say.  The key is to know what you want to do and then apply the software to achieve it.

Any other medium?

I love moving images. I have made several short films.

Influences?

Raymond Moore, Lewis Baltz,  Walker Evans, Henry Wessel Jr. and others.  These photographers lived in an age where the image was more important than the technology.

Interests?

The Arts, the natural world

Commissions?

Yes, I’ll still take them