Growing up I was surrounded by cameras and photographers. I joke sometimes that there is a picture for everyday of my life growing up – but really every important event in my life is recorded by photographs. My mum, more recently, has been making us special books of photos she has taken from the time we were born until now – birthdays, vacations, Christmas etc…they hold precious memories of our family, family members past and present and love.

I come from an eclectic family of artists, scientists and everything in between – being what I consider to be a creative spirit I was always drawn to the artists, especially the photographers, even though I’ve learn so much from all of them. Growing up I loved to hear their stories and to look at their photographs.

My parents bought me my first camera when I was about 7 – it was a tiny 110 toy camera and it came with a book illustrated with bears to explain how to use the camera. Next was a pink 35mm camera (my sister had one to match) to bring with us on our first trip to Florida, then I got a blue camera from my dad that had a flash, and on and on it goes…I remember each camera and what it meant to me.

The photographers in my family taught me important lessons, like one from my grandfather “never leave home without a camera” – a habit I picked up in High School and have never stopped- you never know when you might want to take a picture. He talked to me about composition, quality, lighting and introduced me to the works of many photographers.

My aunt M was also very influencial – her personality flowed out of her like music – you felt alive and excited in her presence. She took amazing photographs that often had vibrant colors and spiritual themes. She was a teacher, an artist and my photography hero. Like all my aunts, I felt close to her even when I hadn’t seen her for a while.

When I bought my first antique box camera in Ireland she made suggestions as to what I might photograph with it, how the photographs might look and how the subject matter could be supported by that look.

Recently on a dance show, So You Think You Can Dance, they had a dance choreographed, by Tyce DiOrio, with the theme of breast cancer in mind. Watching the dancers perform brought back a lot of memories of my aunt, who had breast cancer and passed away in 2004. The dance was beautiful and touching.

As I prepare for my upcoming show in August, I miss her. Her photographs mirrored her vibrant and spiritual personality, and they and her art inspired and inspiring. I am so greatful for all the things she taught me and that I was lucky enough to call her my aunt, my family.

Our upcoming show is rooted in family and our ancestors which has been leading me to think about family members past and how they influenced and shaped me – I hope that what I’ve created for the show will honor their memory.

Tags: box camera, breast cancer, cameras, dance, family, family photos, first camera, life, Lily, memories, photographs, photography, photos, self-portrait, Tyce DiOrio

This entry was posted on Monday, July 27th, 2009 at 9:29 am and is filed under Other, photography. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.