Emilian Avrămescu works as a legal adviser and lives by the Black Sea, in the city where the Latin poet Ovidius was exiled. Flirting with poetry in his youth, he later combined this affinity with photography, which he began to deepen in 2012, trying to illustrate this connection on his blog "PhozEme". His visual poems introduce you to an everyday world with a particular atmosphere, often taking the form of graphic, minimalist or geometric compositions.
Hello, Emilian,
First of all, I would like to thank you for taking the time to tell us about you and your work in this interview.
To begin, where are you from? Please tell us about yourself and your passions.
I live by the Black Sea, in Constanta, the city where the Latin poet Ovidius was once exiled. I work as a legal adviser.
What inspired you to approach photography? How did this journey start?
I think photography has been a dormant state for me. Since childhood, I have been fascinated by the camera, which seemed to me a real magic box. But I started to delve deeper into photography in 2012, when I signed up for a course.
How do you find the inspiration for your visual stories?
Everything around us can be a source of inspiration. I confess that I started to see the world in photographic frames, because at every step, there is an event that can turn into a photographic image.
Please tell us about your blog "PhozEme" and what this selection of visual poems means to you. What are the important elements you should keep in mind when trying to capture the poetry of everyday life?
I try to illustrate the connection between poetry and photography on the blog. After all, a poem is a construction of images created from words, just as a photograph creates in each of our minds an interpretation, a story, a succession of perceptions. Often, you don't understand why you get emotional when you read or listen to a poem - you simply like that string of words that makes you emotional. It's the same with photography - you can't explain why a particular image sticks in your mind. And I don't think there's any point in trying to explain the emotion that the poem or the photograph evokes in you, because you're just killing it. In my opinion, poetry and photography are ineffable states. Perhaps I say this also because, in my youth, I flirted with poetry.
What is the intention of your art, your mission in photography? What is your artistic journey, techniques and theme that you have experimented with so far?
Ten years after graduating from my first photography course, after years of agonies, frustrations and near misses, after the need for validation, I have come to the conclusion that for me photography is not an end in itself, not a destination to be reached at all costs, but a path, a road, a continuous passage in all directions. I didn't set out to get somewhere in particular, I set out not to stop.
Please share with us what photographic equipment you use (camera, lenses, lighting..)?
I don't own a lot of equipment. I have two (already old) DSLR cameras (Nikon D3100 and Nikon D7100) and a few lenses. Lately, I've been using my smart phone a lot and I find it a very interesting experience. I can say that the mobile phone is my favourite camera. Maybe because it is very convenient and easy to use.
What can you tell us about your surreal works? What is the story behind them?
In the beginning I was looking for the perfect photo. Obviously, there is no such thing as the perfect photo. Because, as they say, the perfect photo is always the one that hasn't been taken yet. So all I do is try not to miss the moment, that split second when, out of the dozens of stories going on around you, you extract just one: the one that will become a photograph.
Artificial intelligence programs that create images from textual descriptions are in vogue. What does the visual poet Emilian Avrămescu think about this? How do you see the future of photography?
What artificial intelligence applications are doing now is indeed extraordinary and fascinating. I've tried these apps myself. So far, for me, it's a kind of therapeutic game - I don't feel that these images produced by AI belong to me, even if they are the result of my descriptions. However, there is the possibility to use your own photos as input images, which implicitly makes you a participant in the process of creating the AI robot, which basically becomes a tool, just like any editing app. So there you have it, the discussion is already getting very interesting, with very complex legal, ethical and philosophical implications. However, I don't think real photography will lose out. On the contrary, it will become even more valuable.
Please share with us your favorite photographers you admire, why, and how did they influence your photographic journey?
I admire the work of many artists, more or less well known, but I find it hard to choose. Extraordinary photographers and extraordinary photographs appear every day. There is something to learn from everyone.
Which of your own photographs do you prefer and why? Please tell us the story behind it.
I don't think I have a favourite photograph. But I can say that I prefer black and white images and I like to experiment more and more with mobile phone photography.
How do you imagine the evolution of your artistic work and your figure as an artist in the future?
I don't think I'm the author of an artistic work and I don't know if I ever will be. As I told you, I'm trying to go down this road and I'm also curious where it will take me.