Photographer pushes for collaborative efforts
For some of us, the true beauty of this province doesn’t always register until we leave. This is especially true for former St. John’s resident Ethan Murphy.
“I never thought I would get stoked on clotheslines,” Murphy said, laying his camera bag gently beside him.
Now living in Toronto and enrolled in Ryerson University’s image arts program, with a focus on photography studies, Murphy sees Newfoundland through a new lens when he visits his home province.
Some of his recent works, spanning across the island and country, showcase the beauty he finds in the world, as seen through his eyes and camera. These works will be on display at Relic on Friday as part of a photography-based exhibit titled “Art Attack.”
As a young, emerging photographer with few connections in the local art exhibiting world, Murphy figured many young artists face similar challenges when trying to showcase their works. Students and hobby artists don’t necessarily have the time or contacts needed to book a gallery, secure funding, curate artworks and artists, or promote an event.
With this in mind, Murphy teamed up with like-minded locals to create a simple show displaying the underground arts scene and those who exist within it.
“It’s important for people to just show each other stuff, to share with each other,” Murphy said. “This city is super creative and there’s just not a lot of backing in the municipality’s arts budget. We all know about that.”
This event, a follow-up to an open-medium exhibit held at Seto last December, serves as “a push” for people to show their work and their creative practices, to just “get it out there,” he said.
“We live in a small city, and I think it’s important to get people who see each other all the time, to get them into the same room, to talk, to interact,” Murphy said, noting that the surrounding artworks will help guide conversation between various groups of people who may know each other colloquially, but haven’t had many opportunities to discuss common interests and hobbies like photography and other creative works.
“I want to get people talking, and talking to each other … to give each other encouragement to keep doing what they’re doing,” he said. “Whether it’s photography, painting, drawing — any medium — this is a push to keep going.”
Murphy paused to give a shout-out to a friend, Justin Tobin, who died in January after a long fight with cancer.
“An amazing skateboarder, artist and musician, Justin really pushed all these communities his whole life,” Murphy said. “He got me involved in the film industry, and that’s what got me involved in photography.”
Though Murphy appreciates the collaborative efforts involved in producing creative works in the film industry, it was the independence of photography that moved him toward photography.
“It’s your own ideas, your own set-ups, your own lighting, your own technical knowledge, your own style, it’s all you, man,” Murphy said.
“It’s also your responsibility to get other people involved, to collaborate, that’s important, too,” he mused. “You can’t do everything yourself, and you have to acknowledge that.”
“Art Attack” takes place on Friday from 7-9 p.m. at Relic, 181 Water St.