{"id":23188,"date":"2015-05-01T15:26:45","date_gmt":"2015-05-01T22:26:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=23188"},"modified":"2015-05-01T15:26:45","modified_gmt":"2015-05-01T22:26:45","slug":"lost-in-the-theatre-of-life-interview-with-ximena-echague","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2015\/05\/01\/lost-in-the-theatre-of-life-interview-with-ximena-echague\/","title":{"rendered":"Lost in the Theatre of Life: Interview with Ximena Echag\u00c3\u00bce"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Remains<\/p>\n

Eric’s Note<\/strong>: I am excited to feature the work of\u00c2\u00a0Ximena Echag\u00c3\u00bce<\/a>, a street photographer based in Brussels, Belgium. I’ve been doing online 1:1 lessons with her the last year, and have been amazed with her progress. Below is an interview I did with her, check it out and her projects!<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Eric: How did you get\u00c2\u00a0started in street photography?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ximena<\/strong>: I started\u00c2\u00a0in\u00c2\u00a0street photography\u00c2\u00a0under the influence of\u00c2\u00a0the work of the first Magnum photographers, the Renown School of Madrid and\u00c2\u00a0some\u00c2\u00a0press photographers\u00c2\u00a0during the Spanish\u00c2\u00a0democratic transition.<\/p>\n

When they lent\u00c2\u00a0me five T- MAX 400 to\u00c2\u00a0shoot\u00c2\u00a0my first black and white photographs, which ended in a few Madrid and Barcelona galleries, I realised this would always be my passion and hopefully one day also my profession.<\/p>\n

But it was really\u00c2\u00a0only\u00c2\u00a0in the last decade, while\u00c2\u00a0looking for images that inspired\u00c2\u00a0me, that\u00c2\u00a0I bumped\u00c2\u00a0into “street photography” as a\u00c2\u00a0concept, discovering groups as In-Public<\/a>, and other photographers whose\u00c2\u00a0work\u00c2\u00a0took my breath away.\u00c2\u00a0This led me\u00c2\u00a0to Joel Meyerowitz<\/a>, Constantine Manos<\/a>, Bruce Davidson<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0with “Subway<\/a>“, and Alex Webb<\/a> with “Suffering of Light<\/a>\u00e2\u20ac\u009d. All\u00c2\u00a0of\u00c2\u00a0them marked me deeply, encouraging me to\u00c2\u00a0become a full time photographer\u00c2\u00a0and\u00c2\u00a0hit the streets.<\/p>\n

Besides street photography, what are some other background interests you have? And how do you see it influence your photography?<\/strong><\/p>\n

My life journey, from Buenos Aires,\u00c2\u00a0where I grew up,\u00c2\u00a0to Europe,\u00c2\u00a0where I became a photographer,\u00c2\u00a0and now spending more and more time in Asia, have clearly influenced the way I look at the\u00c2\u00a0world and\u00c2\u00a0the\u00c2\u00a0condition of people around me.<\/p>\n

I have always lived in big cities with a sizable floating population, people in the move searching\u00c2\u00a0for\u00c2\u00a0a new life, which naturally led me to empathise with their hopes and also the struggles they have to face.<\/p>\n

I have always been interested in the trajectory that explains the human condition, the internal\u00c2\u00a0conflict, and the dynamic, and\u00c2\u00a0sometimes\u00c2\u00a0sad, story behind who and where we are now.\u00c2\u00a0This\u00c2\u00a0is why the testimonial value of photography it\u00c2\u00b4s so important to me.<\/p>\n

Works like those of Eugene Smith<\/a>, Josef Koudelka<\/a>, Bruce Gilden<\/a> and his documentary photography flash on hand, among many others, have\u00c2\u00a0been and remain my reference.<\/p>\n

What are you trying to say with your photography projects?<\/strong><\/p>\n

We are all actors, lost in the\u00c2\u00a0theatre of life. I’m interested in the bewildered and wandering soul of each human being. I’m trying to catch a gesture, an expression showing our internal struggle.<\/p>\n

My objective is to reflect that, in different ways, we are all migrants in this globalized world, searching to improve our lot, often moving across geographic and social borders, always surrounded by people from different horizons and conditions.<\/p>\n

What are the main lessons you’ve learned doing online 1:1 workshops\u00c2\u00a0with me?<\/strong><\/p>\n

In my 1: 1 Workshops with Eric, I learned to ask myself the “why” of each photo and thus refine my search, trying to\u00c2\u00a0find an empathic approach to the emotional body language, bringing out a candid portrait.<\/p>\n

Eric encouraged me to define what I’m trying to say through photography. Discovering my strengths and\u00c2\u00a0applying\u00c2\u00a0them in different situations.\u00c2\u00a0Moving from\u00c2\u00a0whispering\u00c2\u00a0to shouting\u00c2\u00a0images.<\/p>\n

He helped me to verbally explain a photograph,\u00c2\u00a0overcoming my reluctance. He encouraged\u00c2\u00a0me to take notes and pay attention to each new stimulus that arises in a photographic project.<\/p>\n

Working together in my projects, Eric has taught me to be consistent, holding on to my own ideas, even discarding some good pictures, which added nothing to the set. I always had the feeling that he\u00c2\u00a0knows better\u00c2\u00a0than met he direction to follow\u00c2\u00a0in this personal and photographic search.<\/p>\n

Huzun<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\"Huz\u00c3\u00bcn \"Huz\u00c3\u00bcn \"Huz\u00c3\u00bcn \"Huz\u00c3\u00bcn \"Huz\u00c3\u00bcn \"Huz\u00c3\u00bcn \"Huz\u00c3\u00bcn<\/p>\n

Remains of a wreck<\/h2>\n

\"Remains \"Remains \"Remains \"Remains \"Remains \"Remains \"Remains \"Remains<\/p>\n

Follow Ximena<\/h2>\n