Jimi Paradise intervista Ryan Edward Scott

Interviste

Sono molto contento che il celebre fotografo Ryan Edward Scott abbia accettato un'intervista per il JHP! Ultimamente ha pubblicato lavori molto forti e provocatori che mi hanno molto incuriosito...

Q. Let's talk about your art: Why did you start taking photos and what do you like to photograph?

A. I had studied art and literature in college and photography became a natural extention of my academic interests. I didn’t take photography seriously as a career until after I had finished college. In fact, without the generousity of my BF, who gave me an SLR for my birthday, I probably wouldnt’t have found myself where I am today. I tend to instinctively be a bit obsessive about light, symmetry, and whatever happens to catch my eye. Generally, I photograph what I find beautiful for one reason or another. Of course I see the world through my own messy lens, and it’s usually flawed, and it’s usually what I love.

Q. Your shots seems to celebrate nudes and male beauty: what do you want to tell us?

A. I like to explore what turns me on, what scares me, and what I don’t understand. Or I purely follow my aesthetic instincts. Cock is generally where all of these worlds collide, though these days I’m more interested in the emotional side of male sensuality than a giant erection.

Q. You put a bit of eroticism in your art: what's the "perfect erotic thing" in your mind?

A. The perfect erotic thing is an open surrender into pleasure. It’s not always about a beautiful body.

Q. Who's your "perfect" model/body that you have photographed? What's your fav cover?

A. I have had the good fortune to photograph some amazing models, of whom a few could be considered the sexiest men in the world. That said, a good model stands out for their abilitiy to bring an honesty to their work. My favorite recently was a shoot I did with Adam Ramzi in San Francisco. Of course I can’t mention all of the amazing models I’ve shot without thanking all of the people who encouraged my work, or alllowed me to take their photo incessently over the years.

Q. Where do you live? Do you travel a lot for your work?

A. I live in San Francisco, CA, and yes I love it here. I moved here 17 years ago, and it feels like home in every sense of the word. I happen to travel quite a bit for my work, though I usually find myself in various parts of California. And usually this involves a lot of gay personalities in tight corridors.

Q. Nowadays what's the role and significance of photography? What's the point of shoting in the present day?

A. This is a really broad question. I guess the thing that I struggle with is how I can manage to fund photographic projects when there is so much competition, and so much content is available for free on the internet.

Q. Do you work for fashion? What do you think about fashion?

A. I do not work for fashion. Fashion works for me. Or at least the same dirty pair of jeans works for me.

Q. Let's speak about art in general: do you have fav artists? Do you have inspiring people in your mind while working?

A. There are a million artists out there that I find inspirational, but if I had to name a few, I really love French fashion photographer Guy Bourdin, director Park Chan-wook, photographer Ryan Mcginley, and photographer Mikel Marton.

Q. And what about technology: are we all photographers today?

A. I like to think so. With apps like Instagram it’s possible to witness a person’s world through still images and that’s amazing. Photography in a professional capacity, however; is survival of the fittest as always.