We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Brett Foraker. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Brett below.

Brett, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

For me the goal has always been to find ways to represent the emotional experience of living by magnifying details and moments that others might not notice. These might be beautiful or horrifying or both. But recently the mission has evolved. Now that we are living in an age where our attention is split between our devices and the real world, my goal is to find a visual language to express that state of mind.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a visual artist based in Los Angeles. I began as a painter and eventually turned to photography. I lived in London for many years where I was a creative director for large several media brands. Now, in addition to my photography, I direct commercial, film and TV projects.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

There is an axiom that states that ‘the customer is always right.’ This is true in the short term but rarely the medium or long term. I’m speaking of commissioned work in this instance. It’s my belief that agencies and brands hire artists to look into the future for them. They want a vision of what it’s coming. It’s certainly our job to communicate this to whomever has commissioned a piece of work—but it is equally their job to have faith in their original instincts and walk into that future with us. This is why collab culture has been such a success. It represents a more pure form partnership where your interests and your ‘customer’s’ become one and the same.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I think most artists have to develop a built in resilience in order to be successful. There is a lot of glamour in this job but behind it is a huge amount of rejection and a long learning curve before you find your voice and place in the industry. Resilience has to be an everyday practice for any freelancer so I find it’s best to own it and even take pride in it.

Contact Info:

• Website: brettforaker.com
• Instagram: @_brettforaker
• Twitter: @_brettforaker

Image Credits
Brett Foraker