When we last put the spotlight on 100 creative forces in Phoenix, it was no secret there were more than 100 individuals who were making waves in the local arts community. So as we count down to our annual Best of Phoenix issue, we're profiling 100 more. Welcome (back) to 100 Creatives
Charles Anthony Darr grew up in Maryvale and is currently living and working in Phoenix. The photographer says he grew up in a lower income household, but that his parents made sure to save each year for a vacation in the summer. They'd often go camping in the Redwood Forrest, Yosemite, Bryce Canyon, and Zion National park, and during these trips, Darr was allowed to use his mother's camera.
"This association married my love for nature with photography," he says. "Yet, as the years have gone by, and I have continued to look through old photographs from those formative years, I have learned that the subject of my viewing interest is not the breathtaking sights of nature that I was able to capture, but rather the sensation of an experience."
I came to Phoenix with . . . my first breath.
I make art because . . . I believe I make photographs for many reasons, not the least of which are:
1) my own enjoyment.
2) my pathology for holding onto every moment of my life, good and bad alike.
3) to explore the possibilities of photographic images.
I'm most productive when . . .
1) I am working to satiate my need to investigate an idea or feeling.
2) I am discomforted.
My inspiration wall is full of . . .
1) memories.
2) conjectures.
I've learned the most from . . .
1) my parents.
2) quiet observation.
3) Classical Greek philosophers have been helpful.
Good work should always . . .
1) be made with the mindfulness that its creation will become only the most recent of many contributions made by many minds to an ongoing dialogue.
2) (to borrow from Stephen Shore) be "consciously casual."
The Phoenix creative scene could use more . . .
1) sincerity.
2) (to borrow from Paul Graham) "The point is that we need the smart, erudite and eloquent people in the art world, the clever curators and writers, those who do get it, to take the time to speak seriously about the nature of such photography, and articulate something of its dazzlingly unique qualities, to help the greater art world, and the public itself understand the nature of the creative act when you dance with life itself - when you form the meaningless world into photographs, then form those photographs into a meaningful world."
The Creatives, so far ... (And while you're here, check out 100 Tastemakers on Chow Bella.)
100:Lara Plecas 99. Isaac Caruso 98. Brandon Gore 97. Kelsey Dake 96. Hector Ruiz 95. Caroline Battle 94: Jennifer Campbell 93. Jeff Chabot 92. Tiffiney Yazzie 91. Daniel Germani 90. Irma Sanchez 89. Daniel m. Davis 88. Kirstin Van Cleef 87. Emmett Potter 86. Sarah Hurwitz 85. Christine Cassano 84. Fred Tieken 83. Lindsay Kinkade 82. Ruben Galicia 81. Robert Uribe 80. Heidi Abrahamson 79. Josephine Davis 78. Travis Ladue 77. Taz Loomans 76. Mikey Jackson 75. Alex Empty 74. Joe Ray 73. Carol Roque 72. Daniel Funkhouser 71. Carla Chavarria 70. Hugo Medina 69. Cavin Costello 68. Claire Carter 67. Lindsay Tingstrom 66. Catherine Ruane 65. Christopher Crosby 64. Aaron Johnson 63. Brenda Eden 62. a href="http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/jackalope/2012/07/colton_brock_phoenix_art_creatives.php" target="_blank">Colton Brock 61. Ernesto Moncada 60. Benjamin Phillips 59. Brad Armstrong 58. Angela Hardison 57. Tyler Quinn 56. Andrew James Benson Follow Jackalope Ranch on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.