Everybody knows a story about people that have spent the entire life at the same place with the same surrounding and even the same neighbors. A story that seems to be more and more rare in this world in constant upset of many kinds. In short, humanity may be divided in two class of people: the nomad one and the sedentary one, but on a longer run, everybody will eventually change places. The reasons can be multiple like the search of resources, of peace, of better social perspectives, of a better climate, etc. With the demographic exponential grow of the latest centuries et the development of transport and communication structures, there are less reasons to stay put in the same place for a long period of time and, on the contrary the pressure to move has never been so great.
Since the beginning of my professional life, I have occupied seven different residential spaces not counting my two summer refuges. My average time spent in each place was about four years. It is little if you compare that to my parents that have been at only two residential addresses for their whole life spend. And I am not considering myself as a great voyager compared to some others that will be better to rent hotel rooms instead of doing incessant packaging and unpacking their stuff over and over. Why we are moving so frenetically especially considering the insecurity that such action generate in our small life, and not counting some sounding argues from those who are living with us, may sound even today a mystery.
Mobility appears to be a determinant factor to succeed in your life both professionally and personally. We are looking for the better in each case, It is not only looking over the fence for the greener grass but also have access to. So, those fences have been replaced by gates that can be opened easily or simply jumped over. The human animal is in fact a nomad specie that need to go forward even if we don't really know which direction, we are talking about...
On the other hand, we need to have some sort of fixed places because it is impossible to bring with us all the material heritage of a life that will constitute a small part of our modest humanity legacy. So, we are also "temporary" builders because most of our constructions are ephemeral except for some very specific megalomaniac historical monuments.
We can compare our different living places as train (airplane, boat, bus, etc.) stations or rest areas that help us to stabilize our individual situations and to rest for a time necessary to build strength and new knowledges before going back on the road of discovery again. Some of us will spend more or less time during these pauses as for some will stay there forever, they can do. Therefore, human history has been a transitional one to the last frontiers we can imagine and travel for. It is that dynamic nature that has been qualified as evolution and that photography and other interpreting media and expressive arts have recorder through time and cultural periods.
Frequent moving will challenge photographers in term of day-today organization, documentation tasks, selecting recording supports and finally finding sharing channels. If we have welcomed the digital ages for some of those challenges just mentioned, there is a growing uncertainty in regard of the sustainability of the photograph itself especially with the phase out of print pictures which have been the traditional way to conserve them through the ages. Speaking from my own modest example, I have almost lost all my photographic archives without any chance to recover them. Is it the price to pay for mobility? May be but there is also the lack of other interests to document the past compared to the previous generation. We live now in a kind of narrow instant past-present-future that seems to exclude any further necessity to expand our historic references.
Some aspects of moving are less critical. Changing places is having the opportunity to observe and learn new things, new behavior and try new experiences. Without the past social pressure on our shoulders, we can reinvent ourselves on and on (That doesn't mean that there are no more restrictions but, at least, they are often different!). It can also provoke more creativity with a new perspective and renew subjects and contexts. It forces us to experiment again and get out of our past comfort. So, at the end, moving can help us to be a better experimented photographer.
Good moving!
© Photos Daniel M: Lumix G95 / G 25mm F1.7 (X 2); Fuji X-S10 / 55-200mm OIS
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