Mobile Photography and Art Interview – Hope In Adversity Interview with Peter Wilkin from Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom
Today, we are publishing our eleventh interview in our new series, Hope in Adversity. One that’s based around art, artists and isolation during the midst of Covid-19. This interview is with award winning mobile artist Peter Wilkin from Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom. There is a nuanced, elegiac interview offering welcome relief amid the current rancour of the world ravaged by Coronovirus. Enjoy!
If you are social distancing or social isolating at this time, are you using any additional time you may have to create mobile digital art or photography?
I am self-isolating at the moment together with my two children ages 12 & 13 (my wife is a nurse & needs to continue working). So, given that I usually have weekdays to myself I actually have less time to create art. My focus has necessarily changed, in that I need to feed the bairns & oversee their virtual schoolwork that they now access on line. And stop them from squabbling. A lot!
If so, have you noticed the style of art that you’re creating changing from what you would normally create?
Not so much my style but definitely my focus. When I create a piece of art I’m often prompted by a strong feeling or something I’ve read, usually a poem. However, Covid19 has more or less dominated my thoughts over the past few weeks &, likewise, the content of my art.
If yes, to the above, can you explain how your art has changed?
I always have an initial (but often quite vague) idea of how I intend to create a piece of art, although I do tend to wander off the footpath into the woods as the image begins to emerge. Additionally, there is often a degree of ambiguity in the finished piece. Since the ‘arrival’ of the virus I’m now consciously driven to create a piece of art that, hopefully, shouts out my message loud & clear.
Have you found additional inspiration to create at this time?
Indeed! The emotions generated within me are pretty constant & impossible to ignore: anxiety, bewilderment, sadness, anger, frustration … with pockets of heartfelt happiness each time someone counters the negativity with love & kindness. Creative ideas ~ fuelled by all these emotions ~ are actually stacking up inside me, waiting to be artistically expressed.
Is creating mobile digital art/photography, helping you at this time specially, how and why?
Well, I guess the first thing that springs to mind is the positivity & a sense of togetherness that reigns within all the online mobile art groups & the mobile art community in general. This definitely does help me in that I feel those others’ arms around me. When actually creating art I do find myself pausing at times, exploring feelings & making insightful connections throughout the whole process.
Do you feel that sharing mobile art/photography at this time is spreading a unity of peace?
Yes! Absolutely! Much of the content of people’s artwork & the accompanying text demonstrates their desires not only for a speedy resolution to the health crisis but also for peace & unity between people & countries. Each image feels like a gift that is given to please, to bring pleasure. This unconditional giving flows through our community. It brings us together. We are flooded with the joy that art brings & we’re not afraid to say so. We sit & gaze upon it through our small screens; it washes over us and we come to realise that the end of art is, indeed, peace.
Anything else you would personally like to add…
The current, worldwide health (& subsequent financial) crisis has become a metaphor for the degeneration of the human race: “Degeneration of a civilisation that has served its time … the matrix of being together has become unhappy” (Michel Maffesoli)
Like Maffesoli, my hope is that this pandemic serves as a prompt & becomes an awakening. Or, as Easter time approaches, a resurrection of sorts where the influential & leaders of countries rediscover the qualities & purpose of how the continuing existence & future happiness of our race depends upon being & becoming together. We can but hope …
A heartfelt thank you to you Joanne & to each & every artist worldwide for giving so much of your self every time you make public your art. Love & light to you all ~
Please read…
TheAppWhisperer has always had a dual mission: to promote the most talented mobile artists of the day and to support ambitious, inquisitive viewers the world over.
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Joanne Carter
Joanne Carter is a British photography journalist, editor, curator, and the founder of *TheAppWhisperer.com*, one of the world’s leading platforms dedicated to mobile photography and art. Since its launch in 2009, TheAppWhisperer has become an international hub for artists of all levels to discover, learn, exhibit, and engage with contemporary photographic practice.Built on principles of inclusivity, accessibility, and artistic excellence, Joanne has spent almost two decades championing mobile photography as a serious artistic medium. Through interviews, critical essays, exhibitions, competitions, and education, she has helped shape and document the evolution of mobile art on a global scale.Her work has taken her internationally, lecturing on photography and mobile art at institutions and events including the Museum of Art in Seoul, South Korea, alongside appearances in the UK and Europe. She has served as a juror for international photography and mobile art awards across Portugal, Canada, the United States, South Korea, Italy, and the UK.Joanne is also the founder of *TheAppWhispererPrintSales.com*, one of the first online galleries dedicated exclusively to collectible mobile art, connecting artists with collectors across Europe, the United States, and Asia.Before founding TheAppWhisperer, Joanne worked extensively in print journalism and photographic publishing, including roles at a paparazzi photo agency and as deputy editor of a leading photography magazine. Her freelance journalism, criticism, and commentary have been published widely in both the UK and the US, with bylines in *The Times*, *The Sunday Times*, *The Guardian*, *Popular Photography*, *NikonPro*, *DPReview*, *Which?*, *Vogue Italia*, *LensCulture*, the *BBC*, and more recently, the *Financial Times*, where her published letters on photography continue to contribute to wider conversations around the medium.Alongside her editorial and curatorial work, Joanne’s own photographic practice has been exhibited internationally across the UK, Europe, South Korea, and the United States. Her work increasingly explores themes of grief, loss, death, memory, and the body.Her current research interests centre on grief, death, and poverty, with forthcoming postgraduate study leading towards doctoral research in these areas.Joanne is currently developing new long-form writing and photographic projects and is available for commissions, editorial projects, speaking engagements, and collaborations.Contact: joannetheappwhisperer@gmail.com)
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