BUILT 2020 Featured Artist Interview - Patrick Naughter

Patrick Naughter is a photographer and filmmaker. Born and raised in Albany, New York, he graduated from Emerson College in 2017 with a BFA in Visual and Media Arts / Cinematography.

Patrick’s winning piece from 2019

Patrick was one of 9 Young Artists to submit to BUILT in 2019 and was the first recipient of the Young Artist Award.

 Hi Patrick! Thank you for agreeing to an interview. First, can you tell us about your 2019 piece, Attic Light, which won the Young Artist award?

My piece for BUILT 2019 was captured during a time where I had come back home to Albany in between moving from Boston, MA to Los Angeles, CA. I spent much of that time clearing the cluttered attic of my childhood home, and the process provided me with a new perspective on the house I'd grown to love so much as a kid. Built in the 1870's, in the Victorian style, I'd always admired it's foundation of stone, decorative trim, and steeply pitched roofs. The attic, however, was always a source of fear for me as a child, with it's dark corners and creaking floorboards. Although my mother has been in the house for 30 years, the attic had long housed leftover belongings of previous tenants, including some truly antique-looking medical equipment, and, as if they had planted it with the sole intention of frightening children, a clown doll.

 The process of clearing the attic of all this clutter, clown doll included, slowly brightened those dark corners. I began to notice how beautifully the sunlight shot into the space through the attic's porthole windows at around noon everyday. On one of these days, after moving a particularly dusty piece of carpet, that light took the shape of a beam, and I grabbed my camera (appropriately it was mother's 35mm camera from college here in Albany), and captured the photo. I went on to continue with my work in the attic and at the end of the process, I found that the space was no longer one that inspired fear. Without the dust, cobwebs, and debris, my attention was now drawn to something I hadn't been able to appreciate before, the structure of the house itself. I was struck by how solid everything felt, the thick timber beams that framed the roof, the chimney that shot through the floor and rose to the ceiling and disappeared into the sky outside. I discovered the latched windows that, when opened, welcomed in the first breeze the attic had felt in years. Above all else, standing in the attic and looking at the skeleton of the house provided me with the acute awareness that the house I had known for so many years as this ever-present place in which to live, had once been built, with wood and stone and glass, by the hands of many people. It made me feel lucky to be a part of this place's long history, and gave me a new respect for it's many imperfections, as I could now more easily see them as parts of its history.

 When I had the photo developed weeks later, those feelings remained and the image now serves as a wonderful reminder of that discovery.

Do you find architecture an inspiring topic for your work?

I love the way architecture reflects the broader environment in which a structure lives, even if that environment can't be seen in the image. The mind is quick to create the context for itself. Additionally, as someone who also enjoys portraiture, I find structures are at times the perfect subject, always maintaining their pose, letting me wait for the right moment.

What made you want to submit to BUILT? 

My mother informed me of the foundation and event, and it felt like a great opportunity to share my work among a community of people who might be interested. 

 What would you say to someone considering submitting to BUILT for the first time in 2020 - especially if they are a young artist?

If you are thinking of submitting a piece to BUILT 2020, I would strongly encourage you to do so. Above all else, seeing all the other amazing work from local artists was incredibly inspiring. I was exposed to beautiful new perspectives of our city and made more aware of the vibrant artistic community we have.

 Are you submitting a piece for 2020 and can you tell us anything about it?

Unfortunately, due to the fact that I moved to California this past year, I don't have much material to offer for this year's contest. That being said, I hope to come home well stocked with film on my future trips back east in the hopes of finding new inspiration.

 Finally, how have you been entertaining yourself during the lockdown?

In lockdown I've found pleasure in long runs, lots of reading, and taking socially distance photographs around my neighborhood!

Interested in submitting to BUILT 2020? Find out more here >>
See more of Patrick’s work here >>