Rachael Short is a photographer whose story is known to many in Monterey County.
A talented artist from a young age, Short was a thriving photographer who in 2009 opened (with Evynn LeValley) Gallery Exposed. A 2010 car crash changed everything. A spinal cord injury changed how Short lives forever, but two years later, the artist returned to taking photos—as one can learn studying her artistic trajectory on her website—this time with her iPhone, capturing images using her mouth or tongue and editing them on an iPad.
Sixteen years after the crash, she continues to work, however at a slower pace, adding to her existing incredible body of work—black and white images that capture nature and human condition as part of nature.
The Center for Photographic Art in Carmel selected Short as the inaugural CPA Monterey County Artist Grant recipient. The occasion is marked by a lecture—first in a series planned by CPfA—the artist will give online 4pm Friday, Nov. 13.
Register for the lecture here; there’s a $10 fee for those who are not CPfA members.
Below is an interview with Short, conducted on Thursday, Nov. 12.
Weekly: How do you see your story and your development as an artist, looking back over so many years and so many events?
Rachael Short: It’s been a challenge to put together the timeline of my story and fit it into an hour-long lecture. The more I get into it, the more I realize how much there’s been on this journey. I’m focusing mostly on the transition: before my accident, then my spinal cord injury, and then how I came back to photography afterward. It was about a year before I could take a photograph again.
Your photographs after the accident are different. How did your subject matter change?
Everything slowed down a lot, because I move a lot slower. I started noticing things I hadn’t noticed before, because I was finally slowed down enough to see them. We’re all moving so fast. I began focusing more on the simple things in nature: light, shadows, texture. I could see a different light and a different simplicity in things. I went from big film cameras with lots of options to just the phone, and I had to figure out how to get the same quality of photograph out of it and how to use it to show my vision in a new way. I can’t move fast, so I’m not trying to capture people or moments anymore. Before, I could take a picture really quickly. Now I can’t, so my work has become much more still. It’s more still-life scenes and fewer people.
Did the iPhone bring any unexpected advantages?
I used to get so caught up in which camera and which film I was going to shoot. With just the iPhone, it’s less about the equipment and more about the photograph. It narrowed things down: this is what I have, one lens and one tool. How am I going to use it to express my art, and how am I going to get the quality of image I used to get from other equipment?
How did you work around its limitations?
I was honestly surprised by the quality of the iPhone and by how well I could still capture what I was seeing. My years of traditional photography definitely helped me use it more creatively. People would see my photographs and say, “Wow, you must have a really nice camera,” and I’d say, “It’s just an iPhone.” As the phones keep getting better, I’m more and more surprised.
When you find something you want to photograph, how long do you stay with it?
It can take a while. I have limited hand function, so sometimes I drop my phone or hit the wrong button and have to navigate back to the camera. Between that and my limited mobility, getting the image I want can take time. Everything’s slowed down, and in a way that’s nice. It’s less rushed and more intentional.
What does your practice look like day to day? How do you get out to photograph?
My health has to come first. I need caregivers to get me up every day, so I have a lot less time in my life. Everything takes so long, and I rely on other people. I can’t drive myself, so someone has to take me to these places. I schedule photo outings now. If I don’t schedule them, they don’t happen, and scheduling is pretty much the only way I can keep photographing. A friend recently told me that this shows how important my art is to me: with everything I have going on, I still find time to get out there and do it. I’d never thought of it that way, but it’s true. It is important to me, and I think that’s why I’ve been able to continue through the 16 years since my injury.
Is your gallery still open?
Yes, by appointment, and I try to be there on Saturday afternoons. That’s my scheduled time. When people stop by and find me there, they say, “You’re always closed! We’re so happy to see you open.”
How do you see yourself within Monterey County’s long photographic tradition and among your contemporaries?
I feel very lucky to have grown up in this area. The photographers from here have influenced me enormously, even unconsciously. I didn’t realize that the images I grew up seeing were shaping who I was as a photographer. Photography is thriving in our community, and it’s really nice to see.
Visit rachaelshort.com.