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RIK SCOTT
Tell us a little about your background... where are you from ? I was born and raised in Belgium. I live in Brussels, where I also studied interior design and, after that, sculpture. I have been taking photos since I was about 15 years old. The past few years, I have been doing it more intensively.
What/who inspires you ? What would you say are your major influences ? That can be anything: a drawing in a comic book, an anecdote, a movie, an Abba song or a White Stripes song. There are hundreds of photographers that I like, really too many to mention
How would you describe your photos for someone who's never seen them ? People are inclined to take things too seriously.
Are you a self-taught photographer or did you have a mentor that showed you the ropes ? I think it is fair to say that I am a self-taught photographer, although I have several friends/colleagues that I can count on for some advice every now and then.
Before you put your work "out there", do you have it critiqued by someone else, or do you just go with what your heart tells you is right ? My wife, very rarely. Sometimes she sees things that I totally had not noticed. Usually I have to admit that she has a point. I also think that it is very difficult to get sincere criticism.
What is your view on the current art market and how do you see photography within this ? I don’t know the contemporary art market, but if photography, as we know it, is your professionas, it seems to me that it is threatened with extinction. In Belgium, for the moment, i think the number of "photographers" is as high as the number of inhabitants.
What's the strangest request you've had ? None, the stranger the better is the way i like them.
What kind of images interest you at the moment ? That is very odd, i guess i like varity, it can vary from one day to another. Sometimes I am already at the shoot when I decide which way I want to go that day. It also depends on the model and the mood we're both in. Usually you absolutely don’t know them and you have to explore a bit first. Sometimes you immediately click with someone, sometimes you don’t. And of course, this is reflected in the result and makes it interesting.It's the same with editing photographs. Sometimes i can amuse myself for hours/days working on one image. other times an image is just the way it is, what you see is what you get. Photography and photographs should stay a bastion of peace and serenity. A moment to enjoy and relax. I get a bit jealous when I see the work of some artists. Here, when i look at Erika Svensson, Esther Varella, for example, they manage to make their pictures look peaceful in this hectic time where everything has to move fast and flashy. I admire that. If I have four hours to take photos, after my full-time job, spending an hour and half hour in traffic for a 10 min drive, when I have to set up the lights, and the make-up artist still has to do her job,... I find it very difficult to take photos in peace and quiet. And sometimes that’s a pity.
What projects are you working on now ? I am continuously rebuilding and recomposing my portfolio. I am working on several series and I have some ideas ready in my head, but I haven’t had the time to realise them.
What makes you happy ? When the people around me are happy, so am I.
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