| Classical Diffusion |
| Photography by Ed Lawrence |
| Born
in the autumn of 1955 and raised primarily in England, I somehow
managed to
wind up in America working with technology for a very large
organization. One evening,
while sharing some Brie and a bottle of Merlot with friends, my host
showed me
a large photograph of a naked and very pregnant woman. Gazing
at
her image
through eyes that had been narrowly focused on circuit boards and
computer
programming for over thirty years, I understood immediately that it was
time
for change. Adobe Photoshop has replaced my compiler, a camera and
tripod my
oscilloscope and spectrum analyzer. Income has plummeted; savings are
gone; the
woman who promised to hang in there until death do us part evidentially
got
tired of waiting for my demise and took off with someone else; but I
have at
last found peace. Strange how a single image can shift one's view of
the world
and where they fit in. Photography, for me, is a deeply personal journey. It is about rediscovering passions that were lost somewhere along the way and learning to see the world from a perspective far different to that which I have become accustomed. For the most part, I shoot what I shoot because something about it intrigues me, or because I want to illustrate some random thought that happens to demand my attention. Sometimes, as in the case of my nudes, it is about nothing more than learning to see and appreciate anew the beauty that exists within each of us. I cannot claim some famous master of the art as a mentor; nor can I claim any formal training in the art of photography. In fact, I don't even claim to have a clue what many of the knobs and buttons on my camera actually do. It is probably better this way. I dearly wish that I had some profound intellectual artistic vision to offer, but I do not. There is no hidden message within my work begging to be set free. Each image is simply another entry into a visual journal that records my progress on this amazing expedition. My only suggestion, if for some reason any of this truly bothers you, is to drink a good bottle of scotch and spend time with a competent therapist. Regards, Ed |