Olivier: "I am constantly driven by the unknown, knowing that it will often be spectacular."
Photo: Antelope Canyon.
The art of Conrad Olivier adds more feather to my wings and makes me feel that I am in the presence of a magus photographer, a divine messenger who gently touched my shoulders, invited me to look at the universe from a new angle and observe the majesty of the universe, the beauty of the divinity and the universal soul which metamorphosed into noble stones, unreachable horizons, forgotten doors in lost villages, rocks and caves in Arizona, botanic gardens in Denver, temples, columns and stupas in Cambodia...and sunsets melting with shivering beauty between our hands and the infinity of the universe. This is exactly what the camera and the secret art of Olivier in his camera do to me, to my confused soul and absurd intellectualism. Conrad Olivier photography art is as brilliant as the sun of Arizona, and as noble as the the columns and faces of the Buddha in Cambodia... I had to interview this man...
TÊTE-À-TÊTE WITH CONRAD OLIVIER
Q: Tell me, Conrad, what light means to you? CONRAD: Light is everything… however, I prefer less light when shooting. Photography is a challenge in itself, however, light makes the process of photography much more challenging as one must discern the proper moment or be able to imagine when the proper moment of light will occur on any given subject matter.
Q: And shadows? CONRAD: Shadows nourish the soul of the viewer with the part they may often want to see. In other words, shadows often allow the imagination to soar.
Q: Is there anything between? Anything between light and shadows? Maybe a world we never knew? A dimension we never explored? A state of mind? CONRAD: Light and shadows may be what we see, however, if the viewer is overcome by a sense of awe or admiration, suddenly, the inconvenience of going out of one’s way to photograph isolated instances in time becomes all worthwhile.
Q: Why did you go to the end and the beginning of the world to take these photos? What was on your mind? CONRAD: Aside from what I mentioned in the question before, I simply want to share what I’ve seen and photographed with those who have not. I am constantly driven by the unknown, knowing that it will often be spectacular… even if it is not, I’ll come away with the thought that it was satisfying nonetheless. Continues next