Meet James Payne

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to James Payne. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

James, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

In 1973 I was told by an eye specialist that I would be blind in 6 months.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I photograph people in the environments they create or at least inhabit. I do so in 3D so the viewer is immersed in the photographic environment. I am now in my 47th year of documenting my friends, family, and peer group in their homes or chosen environments. I do not direct them at all, I allow them to choose how they are represented.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

1) Defiance. I did not accept the diagnosis and instead enrolled in a 4 year university to study photography, and then planned a 40 year documentary project called “American Portraits”
2) Desire. I wanted to see as much and as deeply as I could if facing eventual blindness.
3) Curiosity. How do people really live? How do their values get seen in the environments they create (consciously or unconsciously)?

Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?

This project needs a permanent home. It is a piece of American history, reflecting how people lived in the United States beginning in 1977 and continuing until now. I am still shooting and adding to the project. The project is normally shown in chronological order so the viewer can visually progress from the 1970’s macramé and bell bottoms through the various societal and fashion changes of the last 47 years (so far). Finding it an appropriate home is my current challenge. I am preparing a tool to allow me to show the project to curators in distant locations because it requires a 3D viewing system to view.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

credit Vern Evans on portrait of me,
credit James Payne on 8 3D photos

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