Today, most of our important moments are recorded and saved digitally. As incredible as the technology is, I feel fortunate that having grown up in the 80's, most of my memories were documented on paper.
Remember dropping film off at the drugstore and paying extra for the one hour development? You always had to get doubles to share with your friends. I was a saver and had boxes of programs from the plays and musicals I was in, signed by the cast of course. Postcards that were sent to me and postcards with nothing written on them from everywhere I traveled. I had many journals and dozens of scrapbooks full of newspaper clippings, stubs from the movies I had seen and ones devoted to pictures of actors and actress's I loved. They were oh so carefully cut out of magazines and glued in. And letters! Love letters, letters from friends, letters from camp. Christmas and birthday cards completed the collection.
Today, most of our memories are digital. Pictures taken are downloaded without having to take the trip to the drugstore. Scrapbooks of celebrities have become websites and ringed binders and leather bound journals are now word documents. The technology has made saving almost anything easier, maybe too easy.
There is also a sterility to digital memories that only those of us who were lucky to have had paper ones can articulate. Paper memories had a smell, a feel, a texture. Digital pictures can be photoshopped taking away the hundreds of red eyed shots many of us have in our photo albums (my albums all have elephants and dogs on the front covers). Digital shots do not fade in the natural way paper does. When I go through my parents old photo albums I can tell the era it was taken from the type, size and shape of the picture. Photos used to be mostly small and perfectly square. As the 1980s moved into the 90's pictures got bigger, wider and of sadly to me....brighter.
Paper Memories were also instrumental in the evolution of photographer Trevor Green. Trevor, originally from Jacksonville Florida, says his creativity began with his family.
'My Mom is an artist, which I draw great inspiration from. My Mom was / is always photographing us. As a kid I have a ton of paper memories. She challenged our creative spirit. We always made our Halloween costumes. Without my Mom's encouragement and support, I wouldn't be the artist/photographer that I am.'
TG
In college, Trevor majored in graphic design and minored in fine art. Half way through he took a photo class and fell in love. Like his mother, he began photographing friends and family. Ultimately Trevor made his career in advertising and feels blessed to be able to make his living doing something he truly loves.
'I get to create for a living. As an art director I work with composition, color and design every day. I use the same eye for my photographs. I tend to move and look at angles.'
Although digital, Trevor's shots have a softness, a warmth, even the slight fading reminiscent of a paper memory you might have saved in a box. Trevor says this 'softness' comes from his background in fine art.
'I love the old master paintings. I really look / study the light in these paintings. Good old art history. I love that soft sunlight.'
When choosing a model and set of images to showcase Trevor's work, his shots of model Kurt Roberson were my first choice. Originally from Long Island, Kurt has lived in Tennessee the past 11 years. Kurt is hearing impaired and very determined when it comes to pursuing his career as a model. Growing up, Kurt watched a lot of television and took an interest in fashion. His mother surprised him at age 16 with an appointment to interview with a modeling school and that launched his love for the industry.
Trevor's shots of Kurt are a great blend of an incredibly great looking man and beautiful and unique locations. The brick, the the window, the greenery.
'My locations are mostly abandoned spaces. I have several around Atlanta. I have shot so many nudes at Emory Greenhouse. It is on a working functioning campus. It is incredible. I just have to keep an eye out for the security guards... lol. I shot Kurt in the greenhouse and at an old garage down the street from my house. Cars were going by. He was very brave to be nude. He was great and took on the challenge. He had so many bug bites, it was awful. but we kept laughing about it. he had these red welts all over his body. I love the series with Kurt. Hopefully we can work together again this year. He is a remarkable young man.'
Thanks to Trevor Green for sharing his work, and his memories with FH!
Check out more of Trevor's work on MM HERE: & on his blog HERE:
