meet the artist: agnes thor (& five questions)

Agnes Thor was the first to respond when i asked & i am not surprised, since i don't think i am wrong in assuming from  just looking at her work that she is a lady capable of expressing & feeling on many levels of emotions. i was feeling vulnerable having jsut released my lookbook, & wanted to reach out to other creatives & focus attention elsewhere.  I've posted her photography before, & i was even stunned & thrilled when she shot photos of hannah in the good night day petawawa toque. thank you agnes. all photos c/o Agnes Thor, please check out her work website & tumblr.

what is your occupation? artist and photographer.
what is your astrological sign?
aries
what is your spirit animal?
horse

why is supporting independent makers/designers/artists so important to you personally?
I'd like to live in a world where there aren't only a few big companies ruling the market, and to stop that from happening I believe it's important to support smaller brands and designers.
 I also like knowing where the products come from, and preferably that the makers source materials that are produced in a sustainable and fair way. It's easier to get to the source when getting things from smaller brands.

can you explain in some detail the creative process for your work ?
Usually it begins with a vague idea that I then develop through reading, photographing and just keeping it in the back of my head for a while. Often I have a show that I'm working towards and that really helps pushing me to focus and finish something.
Right now I have a vague idea that I'm working on - it's about horses, but I haven't really found a way or a clear topic, so I just seek out different situations related to horses and then, photograph, try out ideas and do a lot of reading alongside of that. It's a pretty slow process, but I like it that way.

jennie jieun lee

all photos c/o jennie jieun lee

diary of lina scheynius

diary of lina scheynius, all photos c/o lina scheynius

all photos c/o marianna morkore.com

acknowledged inspiration #7: Ana Kraš

Ana Kraš c/o website, avante garde diaries ,& jody rogac

ruth asawa, 1926-2013

ruth asawa, 1926-2013

“I was interested in it because of the economy of a line, making something in space, enclosing it without blocking it out. It’s still transparent. I realized that if I was going to make these forms, which interlock and interweave, it can only be done with a line because a line can go anywhere.” more info & source here

c/o jose romussi

all collages c/o jose romussi

all images link to the source c/o jose romussi

part two: jennifer lee X new year zine

"This image is of my Great Aunt Sylvia. She is in the background and in the photograph that I am holding. She lives in Manhattan with my other Great Aunt Helena, where they have lived for over 40 years. They are extremely important to me and I love them dearly.
I took this picture the last time I had visited them, which was in December 2010. They were showing us old photographs and telling us stories. This one shows off Sylvia’s youth and some guy checking her out as he passes by. It amazes me to see these photos because I’ve only ever known them to be little old ladies."

all photos c/o jennifer lee, you can purchase her limited zine here($6) & all text c/o jennifer lee

check out part one :jennifer lee X new year zine

"Cannon Beach, Oregon (Haystack Rock). Ah, what a dream it was to be here! My boyfriend and I rented a car in September 2011 and drove along the Oregon Coast, stopping in several coastal towns. We were amazed at the endless scenery of trees and mountainous regions. I felt so elated from this too short of a trip."

"This was taken at an annual fair in Port Rowan, Ontario called the Bayfest, aka "Tomato Fest". This is the hometown of my friend Connie. We took a beautiful drive through towns that bordered Lake Erie, such as Long Point, Norfolk County and St. Thomas. The road trip made me appreciate small town Ontario culture so much more and reminded me that i have to get out of Toronto more often!

Detroit, Michigan. It was my first time being in Detroit. I had been eager for a visit from what people had been telling me about it. Detroit was of course a dream holiday! I had a good time wandering the downtown core and driving through the other parts of town. It felt like a ghost town and was very eerie. The funniest part of the journey was randomly finding a dime bag. We got really high while we wandered through the Heidelberg Project. Fun day!

part one: jennifer lee X new year zine

"A zine has always been something that I had wanted to do. “New Year” is also like an intro to future and more specific zines, so doing this got the ball rolling. I love printed work, photo books, magazines and other people’s zines, so why not make one for myself? I like to think of this zine as a little token that I can give to people. And, since I primarily display photos on-line, I eventually got tired of looking at images on the screen, especially small screens. My mega ultimate dream is to create more large-scale and giant wall-sized prints."

around this blog,  jlee (aka jennifer lee) needs no introduction & recently talked about  here as she just happened to shoot the recent spring lookbook for the good night, day shop (& even designed my new website, talk about supportive friend or what) . we've been really close friends ever since those  "golden days" spent in toronto in our early twenties, actually we met where i also met my ol man, at a mod club night that we never missed, & she was my favorite dance partner, couldn't resist those freckles even then. we became even closer once we moved away from toronto, she was one of the only friends that would venture outta the city to visit us, & also has been documenting our small family in photos ever since, (well she is a part of the family too) & everything else around her too. i'm so excited to share the news that jlee has just printed her first photo zine (in a limited number of 50), & also to share in her own words answers to some of my questions around her art.
also check out, jlee's website, shop (where you can even buy her $1 photo postcards & receive a personal message from jenny) blog,  personal photo blog & tumblr.
all photos from jennifer lee's  new year zine ($6), limited of 50

"Back in the day, I obsessively carried an SLR around, wanting to capture every waking detail and every moment that I had ever lived, which is common for most photo enthusiasts. And then with having a digital camera, it was hard not to take about a hundred pictures in a day. I don’t do that as much anymore which is refreshing and liberating in a way. I can enjoy my surroundings a bit more without having that urge to take a photo, unless I have a specific project in mind or if I’m traveling. I usually let the process of taking photos guide itself and I’ll let it unfold naturally."

"I love the portrait and documentation of a landscape. I’m really affected by the environment I am in and how I am engaged with it. We all move so quickly when we’re moving through a space, so I feel like I’m looking to capture a “scene”, those moments or minute details within the entire landscape. It’s not just about the people in the environment, but everything that surrounds it. I love those types of photos, paintings and movies that engulf me in some kind of scene, making me a part of what I see, or those photos that are so natural and unassuming that the space captured suddenly has a character, personality and a story behind it."

"Someone once described my photos as lonely and for me, photography can be such a loner’s activity so I suppose that this comes across in my pictures and the subjects that I choose. Landscapes always mark a passage of time and can live on or just die when they are affected by a series of events, the beast of nature or a community. I live in a city where there is constant change and development, which is in its own right fascinating -- it is amazing to witness how neighbourhoods can change and develop drastically within a couple of years. But then, there are the ‘forgotten’ places, places that once thrived and had seen better days, like the CNE or the Ontario Place in Toronto, downtown Detroit and parts of Hamilton, or even the front lawn of an old house I lived in that didn’t get cut all summer, that have this sense of desertion. It raises some questions and then it forces you to reflect on the past. WHAT ABOUT THE FUTURE STATE OF THESE PLACES??? WILL THEY LIVE ON?!"