Photographer
Tommy Kha, "Parkslope", 2017; "Exhale-travisapartment", 2019; "Christian", 2021; "Dino", 2014; "David Axell", 2019; "I", 2016.
Q: How does the construct of identity influence self-portraiture?
A: I’m never quite sure how much identity and self-portraiture are synonymous. I like to maintain ambiguity to play within this space. Both identity and self-portraits are unfixed.
Q: Is a portrait a performance?
A: Whether it’s the construction for the camera or carrying a camera, there’s some level of photography being performed.
Q: What is the core difference between a selfie and a self-portrait?
A: The distinction, to me, is the distance between the self-portrait being made and seeing the final image. Digital and cellphone cameras allow for more immediacy. Or simply, the selfie is closer to mirrors, self-portraits operate more like windows.
Q: Is contextualization necessary to understand a true (self) portrait?
A: Though autobiography operates more like material in my picture making, I don’t think a Socratic view is necessary for looking.
Q: How do you deal with the concept of time and space within your methodology as a visual creative artist - and do you deal differently with time and space within the identity of the images you create?
A: I’m more curious about continuing my projects as life-long endeavours. I’m interested in how the pictures change over time and cataloguing my own mortality.
Q: What is the most important quality to possess as a portrait maker?