Today we’d like to introduce you to Deon Cullum.
Hi Deon, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My creative journey has been kind of a peculiar one. As a child, I used to draw a lot, creating comic books based on popular characters that I had known about from comics, video games, movies, cartoons, etc. It went from comics to short stories, to poetry/spoken word, and then in my senior year of high school to film & video.
I was also captivated by graffiti art emblazoned across bridges and train cars in my hometown of Richmond, VA, as well as growing up with a wide selection of music in my mom’s house to glean from; hip-hop, R&B, Gospel, reggae, neo-soul, and more!
I can’t quite put my finger on what drew me to street photography initially, but what captivates me now, as I’ve had opportunities to grow my portfolio, are the idiosyncracies of people. I have a prevailing question that sometimes crosses my mind whenever I see people on the street, whether they have the appearance of wealth & success or if they’re in poverty: “Who is this person when they’re not in front my lens”? There’s this sense in which I’m somewhat curious as to the details of a person’s life, and though I can only observe from afar (or close depending my proximity to them), I can’t help but to become curious about people.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I can’t tell. I’ve had my hands in different areas of photography over the past several years: weddings, athletic events, car shows, creative and family portraits, school portraits, etc. I’ve been blessed to have seen some good things come from these areas in terms of personal artistic fulfillment (if not necessarily always lucrative). Street photography, and even to an extent documentary photography, for some reason, has felt the most natural and filled with free. I’m naturally a quiet person, desiring to be unassuming and out of the way. When it came to street photography, I felt more at ease and comfortable in my own skin.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Street photography and I would also add documentary photography; they seem in some ways pretty similar, though I could be totally wrong. Those that are of the documentary photo realm are free to correct me!
There’s not one project or day that I’m most proud of. All of them have stood out as unique in terms of what I’ve been able to capture. Once I’m done with editing and I get to see the final product, I can be critical about what could be better, but since I’m not worshipful of my art, I simply take joy in what I was able to capture at that moment and use those critiques as motivation for my next outing.
I think what sets me apart is my desire to not have everything so pristine and detailed but to get a little messy. If I find something that’s out of focus or even slightly underexposed, there may be a small quality or two that stands out to me that causes me to not toss it out but rather to challenge the perception of others in regards to what is “acceptable.”
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
Don’t be afraid to connect with other creatives or just people in your life that you love and respect. There’s always something to learn. Even if you can’t glean anything in regard to creative insight, you may still learn something from them about how to grow as a person or even examine their lives and/or businesses and see what may not work for you and what works for them.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.deonigel.art
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deonigel/
