I'm so excited to be sharing one of my favorite photographers work today! Jenn of
JK Murphy Photography is such a talented photographer, who make such beautiful prints! I'm absolutely in love with the delicate rustic beauty of the simple things she photographs, they make me want to have them all over my house! I was lucky enough to interview her to get to know her better and I know you'll love her work just as much as I do!
1. Your photos are so pretty, when did you get into photography?
Thanks so much! I have been taking photos professionally for almost three years.
2. Where do you find inspiration for your prints?
When shooting still life, my inspiration comes from a longing to cultivate a space that is beautiful. I'm a perfectionist so it has always been difficult for me to create a calm and soothing environment for myself. It's still something I struggle with, which makes me very grateful to hear from clients and customers who feel that my photos help them feel more connected to their home. Feeling at home and being surrounded by beauty is such an important part of the human experience. With my conceptual photography, my inspiration usually comes from old movies and fairy tales. In general, I try not to let anything that inspires me slip through my fingers -- whether it is a line from a novel, or a song playing in the supermarket --- if it moves me, I'll make a note of it.
One of my favourite writers, David Rakoff, who recently passed away from cancer, said in his book, Half Empty: "Hanging out can be marvellous, but hanging out does not make one an artist. A second-hand wardrobe does not make one an artist. Neither do a hair-trigger temper, a melancholic nature, a propensity for tears, or hating your parents. The only thing that makes one an artist is making art. And that requires the precise opposite of hanging out: a deeply lonely and unglamorous task of tolerating oneself long enough to push something out."
I love that quote because it's tough love for the uninspired creative type, but also a confession that he too was frightened for years to sit down and write. Yet before he died, he became a prolific, award-winning writer who had amazing talent. It challenges the notion that an artist is something you are, not something you do. I felt very moved when I read that for the first time. It was a license to sit down and create something, regardless of whether the outcome would be good or bad. And hopefully in that process, you are able to turn bad into good. He was a major inspiration to me. You can see a piece I wrote about him upon his passing here
3. I absolutely love this print, do you have a collection of vintage cameras?
I really like that one too! It's such a cute camera. I do have quite a collection going. I'm a collector. I could never be a minimalist because I become so attached to things, I feel soulless without them. I inherited a camera from the early 1900s, and I have a couple great film cameras from the '70s. Then a few others I have somehow collected through my teen years and into my twenties.
4. With all these gorgeous photos, your house must have quite a few hanging! Do you have a favorite print of yours?
I like my pear photograph, and I like the teacup with berries. Believe it or not, I don't currently have anything of my own hanging at home! My mother and sister do though :) I think it's hard for people like me to see their work as others see it. I'm still in that place where having to look at my work for an extended period of time causes a lot of anxiety.
5. Besides photography, do you have any other hobbies/loves?
Film is my first love. I kind of just fell into photography after moving home from out West. I was pretty directionless and panicked about the future, so I really appreciate that I'm now able to do something creative as a job. Before studying photography, I studied film production and screenwriting in Vancouver, and I think of myself first and foremost as a storyteller. I love to write, read and watch old movies.
6. What's your favorite thing to photograph?
I love conceptual photography. I love collaborating with other creative types in my community to tell a story through pictures. When I'm not busy with weddings and newborn photography, I get together with makeup artists and models in the city to work on a project, and that is always a lot of fun. I don't ever want to get stuck in a mental space where I am just going through the motions, although that happens from time to time. I'd like for my work to be more evocative in general, although I don't undervalue simple aesthetic beauty for its own sake.
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Thanks so much Jenn! Now go and enter people! :)
