Interview with Lukasz Wierzbowski

q) Walk us through an intimate day in your life.

a)Each day is different, I split my time between daily routines and unexpected events. I try to spend as much time as possible with the ones I love and people in general, taking photos and everything related to it happens in-between. Yoga and meditation help me to find the balance of body and mind. I cherish small and big events of everyday life and I’m grateful for the knowledge and experience.

q)Where did you grow up/where do you live now and how does that contribute to your art?

a)I grew in lovely small town on the south of Poland called Lubliniec My parents house has been (and still is) a location of many of my photos and a big source of inspiration. Each room has It's owner vibe It's a very typical retro style interior that you don't find that often these days. I love wood, patterns and colors of it which makes it very special to me on a personal level as it brings back a lot of memories from my childhood. Also the nearby park and woods has been a crucial part of my life. It was place of never ending journeys, explorations and mysteries, it’s definitely one of my favorite environments.

About 8 years ago I moved to Wroclaw, city on the west side of Poland where I started studying psychology. Here is where I met many amazing people and here I started taking photographs. The creative energy of this place and people is truly unique.

q)What is your earliest memory that propelled you to create?

a)Getting my first camera from my father, an old rage finder would be probably on of the first memories related to photography. At that time it seemed very complex but also magic like, quite difficult for a small that I was at that time but I really enjoyed the whole experience of learning.

q)Tell us a little bit about your creative process.

a)It's quite simple and spontaneous as I don't like planning. I just get in touch with a model, pick a place and clothing and we just start the journey. Everything is based on the interaction between the model and the surrounding as I adore using any given space in an active way. I usually give very overall instructions of or show certain moves and capture the model’s execution of it. We move quite fast from one place to another as I don't like spending too much time in the same spot so the experience is quite dynamic.  Whenever I work with a model for the first time I usually instruct them to forget the previous model experience and just go with the flow of natural body movements and forgetting about all the body imperfections.

q)How do you wish for your art to be perceived?

a)I want to show how important the environment is, especially in relation with humans and our behavior. It seems that we are a part of great system and if we treat everything with mindfulness and respect it can be very rewarding. Also I'm very open when it comes to different  kinds of interpretations of my work and that's the reason why I keep my photos untitled.

q)What do your internal dialogues sound like?

a)I try to be in the present moment most of the time so I don't leave much space for internal dialog especially while shooting photos. I just go with the flow and don't overthink it.

q)Do you feel that there are limitations to what you want to create?

a)Not really because I don't make plans and it's all based on so many factors that I don't have control off that I don't want bother myself with it. If an obstacle appears I just deal with and find the solutions or substitute. There is simply no space and time for limitations.   

q)Do you feel art is vital to survival and if so, why?

a)I think arts is important part of humans existence, sort of relief for unconscious desires and platform of emotional expression. It gives space for dialog on a higher level non-verbal understanding, beyond boundaries and prejudice. It's also a proof that we actually exist as a creative organisms and traces of our minds are hidden in the outcome of our imagination.

q)Tell us a secret, and obsession.

a)I'm quite obsessed with catching the rays of afternoon sun whenever I have a chance.

Where can people see more of your work on the internet?

10. The best place to start is probably my page lukaszwierzbowski.com and flickr photostream (https://www.flickr.com/photos/neon_tambourine/). Apart from that I recommend googling me.