Black and
White and
Color
AN INTERVIEW WITH
PHOTOGRAPHER DIANA ADAMS
5.
Solutions
DRIFT:
In what other ways have you initiated your projects?
ADAMS:
I think a lot of projects arrive out of looking for a solution to
a problem or a cluster of problems. Sometimes, the solution is to
do a series of things in a particular medium or with a particular
material because you might be infatuated by that material--like the
infrared film I was interested in. But sometimes it can be a lot more
complicated. Maybe you need a resolution for emotions, ideas in conflict,
political preoccupations or situations. Things that you've bumped
up against that you haven't been able to resolve. Then what happens
for me is that the project comes up as...not exactly a solution, but
the closest I can come to a solution. In other words seemingly disparate
problems which previously did not seem connected will begin to be
related...
...projects
arrive out of looking for a solution to a problem or a cluster of
problems...
DRIFT:
And form a matrix or sorts?
ADAMS:
Become a set of related concerns which can somehow be addressed by
a project which is the closest I can come to a solution. The project
is a cut or an attack at the problems finally assembled which is sort
of a solution. It's a lucky break when it bursts through. For instance,
my project Street Encounters: Blacks and Whites in Washington began
with many different issues that arose.
DRIFT:
What were the issues that led to the idea or opportunity for that
project?
ADAMS:
I had taken a picture of a black man and a white man in Union Station
which inspired me, but I didn't see it consciously as a total project.
Later, that month I took pictures of the Million Man March which were
mentioned to a gallery in Houston. The gallery told me that it would
be more palatable if I were a black photographer.
DRIFT:
On the contrary, I would think it would be much more unique to have
a white woman's view of the subject. One of the reasons why is that
you have really nothing to gain politically from doing it. And the
detachment from the subject would make it all-the-more objective.
ADAMS:
I had similar feelings. Anyway, that sat there as a kind of problem
for me, so I dropped it for a while. Then one day, I had lunch with
Ken Hipkins, an African American photographer, and saw some pictures
he had taken of South Africa. Our friends said that he should have
an exhibition of these, but he wasn't thinking all that seriously
about it. The next visit I had with him he told me of his experiences
as a black man in the District. All of a sudden it hit me. Why don't
we have a show together? A white photographer and a black photographer
taking on the exact same subject. It was a solution to all of these
problems. The solution is at least a place to start. It's only a beginning.
Again, it might come down to materials. We may set very severe limits
for ourselves. We may just decide it all has to be all black and white,
or all transparencies, or everything a certain size. Both of us have
lived here a long time, so there will also be the emotions which will
come to play a part in it all. I think it will really give him a chance
to express these feelings he has about race in the District in a constructive
way.
DRIFT:
Do you have any immediate feelings about racial relations in Washington,
D.C.? And, if so, how do you predict these views will emerge in your
work?
ADAMS:
I think it is deeply ambivalent and extremely important. It should
be something that we are all aware of and looking at as much as possible.
Preferably, through many approaches: art, politics, humor, which I
also think is a great medium...Finally, it would be fruitful to have
an appreciation of diversity rather than a feeling of misery. It's
important to recognize the struggle...I think our work will have a
lot to say about the ambivalence, the difficulty... (laughter)...I
don't know what it going to be like, really!
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