Today we’d like to introduce you to Jim DiCiaccio.
Hi Jim, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Thank you for the questions. Let’s start with today. Today I’m a photographer. Tomorrow I hope to be one too. Beyond that, who knows? I’m not a professional photographer although some good folks were kind enough to buy some work I produced. So I think I’m a professional amateur.
The photography journey began five years ago upon my work retirement. I thought I would buy a camera as a walking partner. I had no idea the impact photography would have on me. You see, people travel to photograph, I photograph to travel deeper inside myself.
While raising a family, I had a film camera and it was set to automatic. Point and shoot. I had no idea that there could be so much more to photography and I never expected that working with a camera can help you see yourself far better than a mirror.
I’ve always been that person that likes being on the periphery. I’m not necessarily an introvert, but I prefer to be the looker and listener than the speaker. When I’m looking and listening I’m also noticing. That seems to be the photographic thing that was the tipping point to my relationship with the world I see and it’s impact on me at a deeper level.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I’m not sure if I can equate this artistic journey with being smooth or rough. At first I didn’t realize that the road I was headed down was going to be an education, and surely I didn’t know the subject studied was going to eventually be me. It took a while before I realized it was indeed about me. I did struggle with a niggling feeling that there was more but I just couldn’t quite see it. About two years ago I walked by one of my images in my house and it hit me. I noticed a relationship within the photo. I saw it! Then I said aloud to myself, “what is this to that”. I looked further at image after image and saw that “what is this to that” was present in all my photos that I loved. So that was my epiphany. I photograph relationships. Once I found that, the next question became “what are those relationships to me”.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Over the past year or so I have developed a process for my act of photography. It really comes down to trust. I follow and trust whatever pulls me toward it. Something pulls me. I stop, do the photography thing and check focus etc., but, it’s the trust that there is something. I may not recognize or understand it, but something is speaking to me. So I press the shutter and I’ll ask questions of it later.
I find myself circling questions. They involve things like presence, belonging, separation, time and being seen. These questions lead to photos in my projects like Can You Escape, A Place Between Places and The Illusion Of Gone to name a few. The projects are visual representations of questions that ask more questions and maybe a person who views the images will identify something not necessarily named, but felt. My hope is that those viewers who take the time to allow a feeling to enter will recognize something.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
I am hardly experienced or talented enough to be extolling creative wisdom except this one thing that I think is important. Trust your feelings that feel like a mystery. I believe in the earthly self and the universal self. The earthly self often has too much to say. The universal self will speak in due time but you must be open to hearing. A painting, a paragraph, a photo, sculpture or song are all invitations to possibly recognizing your personal mystery if you remain open to possibility.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://jimdiciaccio.myportfolio.com
- Instagram: ubeinguwjim
