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Photo by Irène Nam
(While I'm winding up working on my book, periodically over the next few weeks I thought I'd have some guest posts by a few photographers who I really admire for your viewing pleasure. Today, meet Irène Nam. She's another artist whose work I've been following forever, in part because she's really astounding: she was born and has always lived in France, but Korean was her first language, and she writes masterfully in English. I've found her so exceptional, in fact, she's going to be featured in my book. Read on, and you'll see what I mean. -- Ed.)
Photo by Irène Nam
“What brings me the most joy, that’s what I do.”
~ SARK
I’d always figured that being a writer and photographer would require a lot of discipline, work ethic, and a sense of certainty in my own strength. But I’ve learned that there’s also a sense of humbleness that every artist must accept and approve of in order to find balance, and true joy in what they do.
Realizing that I can stop writing for the rest of my life and very few will notice, no one will die and yet I would not have failed has relieved me from the discontentment and hopelessness I experienced and thought were legitimately part of the job.
And now I write because I know my voice matters. I write because words have the power to heal. I write because some days I actually think that I’m good at it. But most importantly, I write because this is what brings me the most joy.
Photo by Irène Nam
Song: Stay (I missed you) by Lisa Loeb. Today's song brought to you courtesy of Irène.
Wed, January 27, 2010
Reader Comments (16)
Looking at Irene's photos in this post just stirred something in my soul. That first one is breathtaking, they all are. Thank you for introducing me to her and her beautiful art here.
Beautiful photos, but it's the words that knocked me over. In one of those "aha" moments, I needed to read these words this morning. Thank you Irene, and thank you Karen. ~ Alison
stunning photos...so breathtaking this post.
can't wait to see your book in stores. sending lots of positive vibes your way.
one love.
This is one of the best reasons for writing that I've ever heard. I was just trying to answer this same question the other day. I settled on, "Writing is my art," but now I"ll add: "Writing is my joy." Thanks for a great guest post, Irène!
stunning pictures...thank you for sharing.
These are gorgeous...and I love the idea of writing for joy.
Beautiful photos. So excited for the book! Thank you, Karen, for exposing us to such interesting photographers. And thank you, Irene, for a breath of fresh air this morning with your inspiring words!
Absolutely beautiful. Thank you for sharing this.
Oh, these are some of my favorite Irene shots! And it's so true...doing what brings us most joy is being true to ourselves.
She's so talented. Those top two photos make me itch to visit Paris again. Thanks for sharing.