Dani Brown -- Weekly Artist Post #4

Aaron Blum

Aaron Blum's portraits show a clear subject, generally placed near center of the frame and close to the camera. He clearly intends to show a relationship between the subjects and their surroundings; he seems to use a small aperture because the subjects as well as their settings are often in focus. His photos are well-lit; most are made outdoors and make use of the natural sunlight.

Blum's series Born & Raised is meant to show an exaggerated version of his home in the West Virginia Appalachian Mountains. While his subjects are clearly important, the focus seems to be less about who they each are individually, and more about what each individual reveals about and contributes to the community. The series gives us an idea of how Blum feels about his home and the people who contributed to the experiences he had growing up in that community.

I actually had a hard time choosing only three images to show in this post because the entire series is incredible to me. I am inspired by the theme of the series and would love to do something similar with my small, rural hometown to show people how beautiful and underestimated it often is. I like the technical choices Blum made as well, showing people in relation to their environments as opposed to just showing one or the other; he makes the point that neither places nor people alone make up what "home" really is.