the haiku that reveals seventy to eighty percent of its subject is good.
those that reveal fifty or sixty percent, we never tire of.
basho
my journey through the haiku lens began in february of 2008 while participating in the workshop zen and the art of photography with douglas beasley. it was a journey i sensed was coming but i didn’t know at all what it would entail. looking back there were certainly glimpses of what lay ahead sprinkled throughout my early work. but it was during that week that i became fully aware of the path i was about to walk: it was time to slow down and to simplify. it was time to get back in touch with nature and nurture. it was time to become mindful of my life.
i began reading books on buddhism and meditation and wabi-sabi and minimalism and books of haiku. over time my way of life began to change. i was living more simply without having to think about it. i began to trust my inner voice. the more i was true to myself the less i had to work at being true to myself. my way of seeing the world changed. thoughts and ideas and concepts began to coalesce. belief systems were tested. new possibilities presented themselves.
one morning over a cup of coffee i was thinking about photography and haiku poetry, and why i was so drawn to each. it occurred to me that the simple, succinct structure of the haiku was what i sought in my work. i wondered if there was a way to translate the written form to the visual form without losing anything in the translation. the idea of using my camera to create a visual haiku made itself known in my mind. its presence excited me. i wanted to make a photograph that would evoke the feelings i have when i read a favorite haiku, offering the viewer an opportunity to have their experience of the moment the photograph was made.
basho’s words are emblazoned in my mind. when i lift my camera to my eye his words silently echo around me reminding me to take pause and wait until the image that reveals fifty or sixty percent of the subject reveals itself to me.
david morris cunningham
