Draft 2 of my final project artists’ statement:
For my final project this quarter I have created a multimedia project centered around Kim Mitman, “The Mad Poet.” Kim is a brilliant writer and classmate of mine who struggles with bipolar disorder. She uses her writing, friends, medication, and her faith in God to keep herself together. Through portraiture and interviews I attempted to gain a greater understanding of her illness and the poetry that is created as a result.
I was finally able to make it out to shoot photos of Kim at one of the “Thursday Worship” meetings at her church. It was different than I expected — there was a band up front, and probably about 20 people milling around, singing, holding their hands in the air and “feeling the spirit of Jesus in their heart.” I got strange looks from everyone the second I walked in. I maneuvered my way over to the side of the room where Kim was sitting, she had warned me that she sits in the corner of the room, up by the altar, all by herself. She had warned me because she thought lighting might be a problem. The lighting was a bit of a problem, but the biggest problem was the fact that I felt bad taking photos of anyone but Kim. I feared that I would disturb the other people from their worship, and that I’d bring shame to Kim because she had invited me in. In the future if I ever do a shoot like this, I want to arrive early so I can have a moment to talk to people before the religious ceremony begins.
I did not obtain the portrait of Kim and her pastor that I desired, and about 30 minutes after I arrived Kim stated that she was going to leave (I thought we were going to be there for another hour or so). Needless to say, things didn’t turn out as well as I had hoped. However, I think I got a few shots worth using in my multimedia presentation, five profile shots of her in which she begins sitting, and ends up face down on the floor.
The shoot may not have gone well, but at least it was an interesting experience.
