What is normal? Definition: conforming to the standard or the common type; the usual; not abnormal.
What many call normal or everyday, I call a challenge. I focus on the everyday. Beneath the spectacle lies the ordinary, and although often overlooked, there is a true mystery to our ordinary day. My camera leads me astray. It challenges me to escape the routine. My normal life shares a number of commonalities with others; wake up, go to work, come home, repeat. A simple box loaded with film connects my experience of normality with others. Simply, there is a three-part relationship created; a connection is formed between the subject, the viewer, and me. We're all simultaneously experiencing our own normal and the abnormal.
I carry a camera with me at all times to challenge the concept of normality. There is a lack of effort to experience what is different. Abnormal carries a negative connotation. We seem to be afraid of difference; bounded by the idea that what is different from us is not normal. What I frame represents my curiosity in who or what is different from me. Whether I'm angry, lonely, happy, or numb, my emotions guide my eye. Sometimes I want to know more, sometimes I want to share an interesting story, and sometimes I just want to remember a situation; it's all connected. Each image represents a bit about me as much as they share a bit about the ordinary. If I'm hanging my head, I look for those who do the same. I look for a connection.
