Michael Zimmerer (1989), started photography in the ninth grade taking classes at the community college, then graduating from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2009 with his BFA. We talked to Michael about his series Craters and his way of exploration.
copypasteculture: Hi Michael, thank you for taking the time to talk to us. We’re intrigued by your work. Your series Holding the Sea, White Horizon and Craters seem to focus on environments in which there is litte room for human interference?
Michael Zimmerer: I think a lot of my artistic interests dwell on nature and on different philosophies of how life should and could be lived. My newer work all has to do with the latter. Visually I am quite drawn to minimalism, geometry, and balance. I look at a lot of art to see how others have portrayed ideas with visuals, looking at everyone from Michael Kenna to Vermeer to Sally Mann. In the end though, the things I shoot are also directly related to what I appreciate in life. I am also very interested in long narratives in photography and other genre.
copypasteculture: In what way does that appeal to you?
Michael Zimmerer: I am drawn to works that show technique and thought. Or at least in art that is how I feel.
In Craters I visited a beautiful place in the US that made me wonder how people would live there. That idea evolved from my thought “what if some event happened in the past that altered our lives to be something or somewhere else?” Well, perhaps this series is one answer. I have always found the prospect of living in a different life very intriguing, and when I travel I can’t help but wonder at how different each place could be.
copypasteculture: Does that mean that your artworks an extension of your imagination?
Michael Zimmerer: My artwork is a personal exploration in philosophy. For me art is my way of figuring out what I feel about the world, about people, about places; and helps me to tell or show others what it is I think.
I am about to release two new bodies of work, one fully self portraits and one all about light. They work together in a way, but are able to stand apart as well. When I was younger I just wanted to make good images. I focused on aesthetics and quality, but not meaning. Now, since I have worked so hard on the technical parts, I have realized the necessity in myself to produce works that say at least a little something. I would consider myself very involved in concept and the sharing of thoughts.
copypasteculture: Thank you, Michael, for sharing these thoughts.
Michael Zimmerer: You’re welcome.
All photographs copyright Michael Zimmerer. copypasteculture.
