I released the shutter, my heart thumping. If I had captured what I wanted, it would be a picture based on related shapes and deepest human feeling. A step in my own evolution.

Alfred Stieglitz, 1907

A PHOTOGRAPHIC IMAGE can  illuminate the familiar and unfamiliar,  evoke memory, unveil secrets, and  propose bold, fresh ways of  contemplating the flow of time, beauty  and identity. Each is a reflection of its  creator’s way of thinking and seeing,  through the camera’s lens. 

A SELF-PORTRAIT IS CREATED when the photographer’s eye and lens turn inwards. It is a record of one’s self seen, experienced and revealed. It is, in the deepest sense, an expression of what one feels about one’s life in all of its complexity.

MY VOICE, MY LENS is a series of  workshops designed to integrate the  arts of leadership with self-portrait  photography. The photography  component explores four fundamental  themes that guide artists in ‘seeing  oneself’ through a camera’s lens, as  well as towards an understanding of  these themes’ visual impact on  photographic imagery. We look at  ‘Light and Shadow’, ‘Point of View and  Angle of View’, ‘The Frame and Picture  within a Picture’, and ‘Self-Portrait as  Metaphor’. 

At the beginning of each workshop, the artists present their ‘Best Of’ self portraits - as part a weekly assignment related to these photographic themes. They then engage in a collective conversation in response to each shared image. The artists also compose a weekly artist’s statement that describes his or her creative process and intention. 

MY VOICE, MY LENS REPRESENTS THE ARTFUL EVOLUTION of 85 Wave leaders - through self-portrait  photographs created in 10 cohorts  over the past 5 years (2016 - present). Each artist continues to inspire me to look deep within and to be an eloquent communicator of visual stories that truly matter.