Elizabeth Watt

Descripción del Artista

When my daughter, who essentially grew up in a photography studio, was 7 years old, she asked me the seemingly simple question: ”Mom; How do you see?" At the time I remember it feeling like one of those questions kids ask when they want to get your attention of course, but also when they want to slightly annoy—as if they know how open-ended, brilliant, and unanswerable their question really is. It became a thing with us for years to come; initially with me speaking to the science of how the eye works—then moving on to perception, perspective, the soul and everything in between. I’ve been excitedly pondering and responding to the question ever since. From my NYC based studio, for 25 years, I shot food, still life, and beauty for a wide range of companies across all industries—editorial, advertising, corporate and fine art. My clients included Food & Wine, Gourmet, Bon Appetite, Martha Stewart Living, Body and Soul, Town and Country, O Magazine, Fortune Magazine and The New York Times Magazine, Campbell’s, Proctor & Gamble, Colgate Palmolive, Bath and Bodyworks, Pepperidge Farms, Kraft, General Mills, and American Express, Neiman Marcus, Rosewood Resorts, Guerlain, Estee Lauder, Coty and Revlon to name a few. Those years were endlessly inspiring, fun, challenging and rewarding. I'm grateful for all the creative freedom and the opportunity to collaborate with so many incredibly talented people along the way. I've also hugely enjoyed teaching photography and creativity, most notably as an adjunct professor at The Newhouse School at Syracuse University , as well as running seminars at various workshop and corporate settings around the country. Over the years, it’s been pointed out that much of my workshop content around photographic seeing (shifting our perspectives, keeping our eyes 'fresh', re-framing, changing our focus, tuning in to present moment awareness, letting go of preconceived ideas) has tremendous synergy within the realms of mindfulness, well-being, personal growth and human evolution. So, in addition to evolving my approach to the craft of photography recently, I’ve also immersed myself in the study of the creative mindset, researching the psychology of ‘Seeing’ informed by the work of many thought leaders old and new in realms of creativity, positive psychology, change theory, Buddhist philosophy, contemporary neuroscience and mindfulness practice. I feel like I've become a ‘curator of ideas’ around the links between how we see, or the ‘style of our gaze’ and how it affects our overall sense of well-being. The Art of Seeing has much to inform The Art of Living. I shuttle between NYC and San Miguel De Allende, where I was simply drawn to the beauty which, in a very deep down sense, abounds. It’s also brought me back to my roots as a photographer, where simply walking around with my camera—tuning in rather than tuning out with fresh eyes—is my greatest joy still.

Exposiciones en las que ha participado como artista

Soul of the object

Individual