Patrick McCormack is a photographer from Vermont who mainly shoots urban landscapes characterized by an evocative, at times almost mystical, luminosity. His scenarios are devoid of the human element and are made at dawn and late at night with a medium format.
We at Collater.al asked Patrick to tell us her story through an interview, which you can find below:
How did you start photographing, do you have a memory
I picked up shooting and developing 35mm film in high school. I attended an alternative school that allowed you to choose a major and propose your own course content, so I chose photo history and film processing. It was a lot of undirected street shooting and experimentation back in those days, just trying to escape the cringe of youth I guess.
Your images are very suggestive, how did you come to understand what your style was?
I’m not sure that I do understand what my style is, every season it shifts a bit and I hope my positions will continue to do so. Change is healthy and appealing. All I’ve done is try to find moments that may otherwise go overlooked, and capture them as I see it. With practice, the final image has become more consistent with my memory of the scene, so maybe my current style is attempting to be “accurate” in some way.
Is there a particular reason why you selected these photographs
I chose a few highlights from 2019, jumping between winter, spring, and summer.
Which artists influenced you the most
Patrick Joust has been a major inspiration for me, especially the emotive quality of his landscapes. By day I’m a photo storyteller, so photojournalists like Michelle Groskopf and Calla Kessler have been a huge influence on my approach to digital photography. Groskopf has especially inspired me to embrace more artificial light, I love her eye for detail and sense of humour.
What is the location in the world that inspires you most to take photographs
Follow Patrick’s take over on @Collater.al Instagram profile!
