The second Artist Round Table was held in Port Townsend at the end of June 2012. This time photographers from California, Indiana, New Mexico, Ohio, Seattle, Ottawa and Vancouver began a marathon conversation on their art and photographer together with several artists from PT. Some of the participants from the first Round Table knew what to expect while others who were there for the first time were in for a unique experience. Not for the faint of heart, these nine participants rolled up their sleeves and began the hard work of discovering how to create work with impact. Like the first ART, the comments show a transformation that can take place when photographers are willing to bear their souls to make work that matters.
“I spent the past three days in Port Townsend, WA. This small town on the Olympic Peninsula was home to a veritable meeting of the minds. For the three full days, pretty much sun-up to sun-down, myself, some old friends, and a half-dozen then-strangers, now all people I’m proud to call my friends, met up to talk about the process of creating art. We’re all photographers, but the conversation was by no means bounded by the limits of that particular craft….I have no idea what’s coming next… I need to spend the next week, month, however long it takes, wrapping my head around the last three days. I can’t wait to see just what is coming next.” – Jacob Lucas
So you might ask, did I learn anything this weekend…the short answer is this. I learned that sometimes what you leave behind for someone else is what matters. It might be a conversation with someone to help them understand something they were struggling with or something they might say to help me. But in the end, artist want to leave a trace. A trace of something behind in the world.” ~ Daniel Gregory
“We talked at length about vision and voice, we looked through books of images by legends in photography, and we viewed each other’s work. By the end of Friday I was pretty certain I didn’t belong in the room and I had nothing significant to say, photographically speaking. I’m so glad ART was a multi-day experience. I don’t think even Ira Glass could have persuaded me on Friday. My epiphany came on Saturday…” ~ Dorothy Brown
“Without hesitation I would apply again to attend an Artist Round Table (ART) hosted by the amazing folks at Rear Curtain in Port Townsend…Not everyone got the answers they were looking for but they sure left with a fresh set of ideas to consider” ~ Ken Udle
