You come across a lot of talented photographers on etsy who make very beautiful images but Andrea Despot not only makes stunning images with her grasp of composition, form, and light but also with her own personal style. You won't find the ordinary portraits in her etsy shop but powerful images full of striking shapes. She is a true fine artist, who uses her camera to paint with light in striking ways. Andrea also creates amazing self portraits and has entered the prestigious "The Power of Self: an image competition" put on by Artist Wanted in New York City. It is juried by actor and art lover Steve Buscemi, director and producer Chris Weitz, curatorial assistant at the Guggenheim Museum Helen Hsu, and Flavorpill founder Sascha Lewis.
She describes herself as a shy person in her bio:
"Looking through the images of the past two years, I've found that in all of my favorites, I've hidden my face. I think this makes for an interesting self exploration. My shyness is something that I obviously realize, but to see it come out unintentionally in photographs is something that has surprised me. "
"Looking through the images of the past two years, I've found that in all of my favorites, I've hidden my face. I think this makes for an interesting self exploration. My shyness is something that I obviously realize, but to see it come out unintentionally in photographs is something that has surprised me. "
How did you get started?
"I can’t remember what made me want to start doing photography other than the fact that I’ve always loved art and I’ve always loved photographs, so I guess it was obvious that the two would meld together at some point. I bought my first camera the summer after my freshman year of high school. Three weeks after my high school graduation I attended The Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale where I majored in Photography. I graduated during the summer of 2007 and I’ve been doing freelance jobs since then. I am currently working at a printing company as a photographer, though truth-be-told I am doing mostly color-correcting work at the moment."
"I can’t remember what made me want to start doing photography other than the fact that I’ve always loved art and I’ve always loved photographs, so I guess it was obvious that the two would meld together at some point. I bought my first camera the summer after my freshman year of high school. Three weeks after my high school graduation I attended The Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale where I majored in Photography. I graduated during the summer of 2007 and I’ve been doing freelance jobs since then. I am currently working at a printing company as a photographer, though truth-be-told I am doing mostly color-correcting work at the moment."
What is your favorite creative thing to do?
"Photography is obviously my favorite creative outlet! I used to draw and paint, but it’s been a long time since I’ve done either. If you count reading and watching movies as creative activities, I’m always doing both of those!"
How long have you been doing this?
"I started doing photography in 2002 and I think even sold my first photograph that year! During high school I entered several art competitions where I sold work and won awards. I would say that, technically, I’ve been working as a professional since 2005 because that’s the year my first photography internship began and also the year I started at the Art Institute. I had several more internships during college, but I’ve been working in the field as a photographer since 2007."
What is something most people may not know about you?
"Most people know that I have always been a very quiet and shy person. What most people don’t know, other than very few close friends and family, is that once I open up I tend to be very talkative, to the point that I interrupt people because I get so excited about what I’m talking about. I can also get really loud and really silly, which can sometimes be embarrassing when I think back on it."
When did you realize that photography was your calling?
"There wasn’t an exact moment when I knew I wanted to be a photographer. I’d been photographing through high school and I loved it better than any other artistic medium I’d experienced. I always knew I would be an artist because I’d always been one, so by the time I needed to start applying to colleges I knew it would be for photography."
Who is your favorite photographer of all time?
"I absolutely do not have an all-time favorite photographer! There are way too many amazing photographers and amazing photographs for me to choose only one. I am not exaggerating or attempting to dodge the question! If you really want to know, I have a blog dedicated to all of the amazing photographs that I come across: http://www.andreadespot.blogspot.com/ "
*Giveaway*
One winner will receive a beautiful 5x7 print from Andrea Despot Photography of the image of your choice.
To Enter:
Visit AndreaDespot and leave a comment telling me your favorite item in her store. Don't forget to leave your e-mail so I can contact you if you have won.
Extra Entries: please leave one separate comment for each entry.
•follow my blog with google - 1 extra
•follow me on twitter (lilacpop)-1 extra
•become a fan of LilacPOP on Facebook - 1 extra (and there will be a random giveaway when my facebook page hits 200 fans--you will be automatically entered)
•tweet this giveaway and post the link in your comment- (may do this daily) 1 extra/day
Copy and paste below:
I just entered to win a 5x7 print @lilacpop http://lilacpop.blogspot.com/
•favor me on technorati , stumble upon or any other social networking site- 1 extra
•Put a link to my blog on your blog - 2 extra
•blog about this giveaway - 3 extra
•buy a product from AndreaDespot - 5 extra
Contest will run for 2 weeks. Ends at Midnight on the night of February 9, 2010. Open to All Countries. Winner will be chosen by online random generator. Winner will be notified by e-mail on February 10, 2010 and will have 3 days to reply or another winner will be chosen.