#chaunceyhare

"As of this writing, I have been away from engineering for two years and find that the photography world is not unlike the corporate situation from which I narrowly escaped. Hardheartedness and organizational thinking have stifled creativity and instilled conformity in many photographers. Success, most easily achieved by seeming to 'extend tradition,' seems to be more important than clear perception and truthful representation. I am unable to make human contact with many photographers and some curators who too often have felt it necessary, because they feared for their own survival, to be closed off and deny their own emotions and true perceptions. I see the necessity for restoring moral and ethical values to photography and I am very hopeful that this can be accomplished. I admit to fear - I am worried about survival for myself and others who try to be open. I feel that by joining together with other photographers who feel as I do, possibly on a collective basis, all will be able to survive. The message to fellow photographers is: Realize your own personal power; the character armor displayed by persons in authority is their badge of fear. You have the answer, it is inside you. I wish to encourage you to act on your own true feelings." - Chauncey Hare (post script to introduction, "Interior America," 1978)