The photograph named Departure (Vessel) was printed 18 feet wide by 5 feet high and displayed in a group exhibition called “Harbour”. After it was dismantled, it was essentially going to stay concealed in a plastic bag.

I began the action of burning this past winter. Once a month, I’d get out a piece of paper and write down the things that I wanted to let go. It was an exercise in self-reflection that turned into something more; like an energetic release, it was extremely cathartic. The idea of burning the print was a bit crazy at first and felt like taboo. I couldn’t stop visualizing the powerful representation of the imagery and how the process of burning the piece would actually bring it to completion.

It takes a village. Thank you: Angel Bustard, Jade Mueller, James MacDonald, Michael Mohan, Mike Duncan, Mike Roy, Nathaniel Mueller, Nick Staples, Vanessa Duncan, Victor Szymanski

Watch : "Incendio"

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” (Quote by H. Jackson Brown Jr. but commonly misattributed to Mark Twain.)

I came across this quote while doing research of the word ‘harbour’. What inspired and resonated with me the most was that it addressed the idea of being held back by the limitations of safety that can leave us unchallenged, stagnant and unable to grow.

For the making of the photograph, I used a model who is a very good friend. We trust each-other immensely which is important to me when making work deeply personal. In general, I am drawn to working with people in which there already exists a rapport and an understanding of each other.

In this case, I didn’t divulge much information to him about what the process meant to me or how I really planned for the final photograph to be displayed. The concept hadn’t fully formed yet so he had just as much of a role in the evolution of the process as I did. He was just as much a conduit for my own experiences as he embodied his own.

I love this kind of energetic and symbiotic relationship. It is complex but when it’s right, it works effortlessly.

The final photograph is the result of an emotional and creative process exploring risk, renewal and rediscovery. We remain secure within harbours until we are willing to leave the familiar. Much like vessels, we navigate the precarious waters of life; a surrender and a departure into the unknown.

Installation at Bayshore Beach

HARBOUR & The Making of "Departure (Vessel)"