Photographer Ashley Sophia Clark – Hook & Nail Gallery Event

Ashley Sophia Clark is a Portland-based photographer who is participating in Livestock’s upcoming Hook & Nail gallery event. We sat down with Ashley to discuss her approach to photography, using people as props, and why she still shoots with film.

1) Having studied art extensively, have you always been a photographer, or did you begin in another medium?

I like to notice things and I like to notice the things that other people notice. I’ve always been into language and it’s limitations and I like to think of the camera as another tool for stories to tell themselves.

2) Your work has an abstract quality to it. What’s your inspiration?

Energy. Things beyond a vocabulary. Multiple realities. Questions that lead to more questions.

3) As someone who uses people as props, how much preparation do you do before a shoot?

I feel like shoots often turn into these little happenings. It’s such a group effort and kind of like a strange portal where what we planned for and what we couldn’t have planned for bump into each other and create their own dynamic.  That’s usually my favorite part.

4) You still shoot with film. What do you like about it compared to digital?

The perfection of all the imperfections!

5) What’s something new you’ve learned about photography this year?

That the picture itself is maybe besides the point.

To learn more about Livestock’s Hook & Nail event, click here.