We were lucky to catch up with Annie Claflin recently and have shared our conversation below.

Annie, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

Hello and thank you for inviting me to talk with Canvas Rebel.

All of my artistic projects begin with a personal connection and tell a story about who I am. The photographs I made of my family and our limited surroundings during the initial Covid-19 lockdown encapsulates the joys and challenges of my early motherhood and, thus, are the most meaningful works I have made. Making pictures for those several months helped me survive that difficult time; we had just moved across the country, we barely knew anyone in San Diego, and we were living amidst construction on our home and in our neighborhood.

After completing this series of work titled “Covidity 2020 (The Three of Us)”, I eventually realized that my son, my husband, and I are all strong individuals with a tight family bond that will continue to pull us through life’s struggles. When reviewing my portraits and still lifes, I now see that nothing felt okay during that spring and summer and that my family and I are resilient. I also realized that I didn’t have to rely on photography alone to express my creativity; the final presentation of “Covidity 2020” pairs images with diary entries that describe what I was thinking while photographing my family and our home. This series helped me branch out across other artistic mediums like writing, collage, and installation. As a result, I now have more artistic tools at my disposal that give me a sense of calm amidst the storms of everyday life.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Coming from a family of photographers who built a darkroom in the basement of my childhood home, exploring the photographic medium came naturally. I began considering photography seriously in my late teens; I assisted a local photographer and mentor who suggested I attend New England School of Photography (NESOP). At NESOP, and subsequently at Massachusetts College of Art + Design, I delved into the same subjects I photograph today – self-portraiture, portraits of my family members, the landscapes where my family resided, and the interior of our homes. Upon graduating from MassArt, I assisted a number of recognized photographers in the Boston area, worked at local museums, a photo lab, and my alma mater, all while showing my work in galleries and museums for roughly fifteen years. My love for these local arts institutions inspire me to pursue a Master’s degree in Arts Administration at Boston University (BU). After graduating from BU, I began working as the Fine Art Specialist at a major auction house until my husband received an offer to move to Los Angeles for work. When we landed in LA, I switched gears again, returning to photography by making portraits and candid images of families. As my own family was of utmost interest to me photographically in my formative years, it was a natural progression to discover other families through my camera. Subsequently, we transitioned again, relocating back to Boston after the birth of our son. My son’s positive influence on our lives redoubled my commitment to family photography, capturing compelling relationships amongst mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, and siblings.
Our family completed our third cross-country move to San Diego in January 2020, and safely photographing families amidst a pandemic felt impossible. This was an especially challenging time for me, thinking about reinventing myself in a new city while also taking care of my son full time. As fate would have it, this uncertain space led me back to family photography – embracing the documentary approach I’d taken to photographing my family of origin for over twenty years. During those tumultuous months at home, I channeled my frustration and disappointment about living in isolation into the “Covidity 2020” series. This project was the ideal way for me to honor my own familial experience between portrait commissions. Simultaneously, I revisited a self-portrait project (“Minor Imperfections”) that delves into mental health and allows me to confront my self-image. In frequenting the seaside for self-care breaks, I also discovered the backdrop of a current (photographic) project, “Undertow”, that addresses the changes I’ve gone through as I moved between East and West Coasts.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

The main areas of focus in my artwork, and my life, are family, mental wellness, and our vanishing shorelines. All of these themes are avenues for exploring identity – who are we when we give all of ourselves to our children, who are we when we don’t feel like ourselves, and how do we anchor ourselves when the places we call home disappear? Looking to the future, I aim to collaborate with nonprofits, using these themes in my artwork to raise awareness about issues surrounding child rearing, mental health, and the rapidly changing coastal environment.

Outside of my personal work, making compelling family portraits is extremely important to me. As mothers, fathers, and guardians, it is easy for us to get stuck behind the camera when we are with our families. In our role as caregivers, we are an integral part of our children’s lives, and although our children undoubtedly recognize that, they should also be able to see our partnership with, and love for them, captured in photographs. When my son remarks about family images we have displayed around our home, it sparks memories and conversations about time spent together that we all cherish. These images solidify his feelings of belonging. These are the moments that I adore – when I see that we have shared, and will continue to share.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Frequent your local arts organizations! These entities are largely nonprofits – they rely primarily on the kindness of others who give their time, expertise, and resources so that our creative ecosystem can thrive. Without these hubs for artists to create, receive feedback, and support their work, the arts flounder. The arts highlight societal strengths and weaknesses, pose hard questions, cultivate empathy, and bring people together. As an artist, it is utterly important for me to surround myself with my people. Working as an artist can be a lonely endeavor – I spend most of my time working by myself in my studio. I thrive in communal spaces, not just in the typical locations like museums or galleries, but also in places where ongoing projects can receive feedback. I have tremendous gratitude for these local organizations. I want to thank all the supportive institutions that have introduced me to fellow artists and have provided me with so many incredible opportunities. I greatly respect what they do, fostering community engagement here in San Diego.

If anyone would like to see my work in person, meet me at the opening reception of the “(S)Light of Hand” exhibit at The Photographer’s Eye in Escondido on September 24th from 4pm – 7pm.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.annieclaflin.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annieclaflin/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annieclaflin/

Image Credits
All images copyright Annie Claflin with the exception of Annie photographing a young boy on the beach by Thomas Kornecook