Stories that need to be told
Featuring Chad Unger Words by Nastasia Khmelnitski
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Chad Unger is a visual artist from Maryland currently located in New York. One of his exhibitions was presented in ICP, Goldmoony Projected, New York (2019). In this Zoom interview, I speak with Chad about the diverse communities he is a part of that are imperative to understanding his development as a person and an artist. The deaf community, photographer community, LGBTQIA+, and snowboarding community are a big part of Chad’s life, and each has a major influence on his work.
Growing up in a deaf family and communicating in sign language allowed Chad to become an observer, one of the essential characteristics to spot the story and present it to an audience in an engaging way. The decision to leave school and follow his passion for snowboarding created an opportunity to evolve physical strength and resilience. And the biography of a traveler living in several states in the US, constantly on the move, opened up opportunities to capture magnificent landscapes and establish an aesthetic in which the background is equally important to the narrative as the character in the image. Chad explains, “If I see people, I want to take pictures of them, but the landscape is an important part of that individual's life. It's not just what's happening with them as a person, but what’s happening around them.”
Authenticity is a crucial element in Chad’s work; it is about noticing and capturing the moment from a personal perspective which is unique to his projects. During the interview, we speak about Chad’s experience in snowboarding, his technique in choosing the angle and capturing the moment, and the importance of training the photographer’s eye. We close the interview by speaking about Chad’s upcoming projects and a plan to create a photo book. The interview was held with Sariah Stapp, an ASL interpreter.
‘I noticed that traveling helps me be more inspired. It helps me see things differently. And when I travel, I tend to notice different stories that need to be told.’
Traveling
Nastasia: Hi Chad, it's nice to meet you! I’d like to start our chat talking about traveling. You've been traveling and relocating so much! I know from my own experience that it's not easy to adjust, fit in, and build your new community. You lived in different states: Maryland, Colorado, Utah, and New York. How does this experience affect you on personal and professional levels, seeing new sceneries and meeting new people?
Chad: It definitely plays a huge role in my work. I noticed that traveling helps me be more inspired. It helps me see things differently. And when I travel, I tend to notice different stories that need to be told. Discovering new places is easier than staying in one city. So when I stay in one city for too long, I lose motivation. Traveling plays a big part in my life. But in the long run, I would like to be settled in one place and be able to find more local stories to tell through photography.
Nastasia: You're based in New York now, right? What is your favorite place so far?
Chad: Right. I'm in New York. My favorite place, I would say, is New York. There are just more people who have similar interests and more photographers I can meet. And there are more opportunities.
‘I started snowboarding when I was 14, and I realized I needed to follow that passion. And so, at 17, I said, "I’m alright, I’m out," and I began my snowboarding journey. I met people through that, and it helped me a lot. It was when I realized that my passion is in photography as well.’
Community
Nastasia: Building a network of photographers is important to so many artists with whom I speak. Sometimes, it's just about creating a community, so your work is recognized. New York is one of the great places to do that. Speaking about communities, at a certain point, you left your first community, a community that included your parents and childhood friends. You've been a part of the deaf community and learned in a deaf school. Then, you decided to explore and meet new people. So you joined a new community — of snowboarders, which seems to be a big part of who you are today. This change influenced your work as suddenly you have different scenery, the mountains and snow. How was the experience entering new communities, meeting new people, and building new circles: the photographers' community, the snowboarding community, the LGBTQIA+ community? How do you think it affected photography?
Chad: I grew up in a deaf community with a deaf family. Everything in my world was deaf and accessible at that time. I truly felt like something was missing. I really needed to go and explore my other identities; snowboarding, LGBTQIA+, and other communities. At 17, I had to leave my hometown and follow my passion.
With snowboarding, I was able to get away from all of my problems in school. It was a big escape. I started snowboarding when I was 14, and I realized I needed to follow that passion. And so, at 17, I said, "I’m alright, I’m out," and I began my snowboarding journey. I met people through that, and it helped me a lot. It was when I realized that my passion is in photography as well. I continued to follow my passion which eventually led me to New York. The deaf community felt limited to me. There is a small Queer community and a small photography community, but I felt like they weren't fully engaged. That's why I had to leave.
Regarding your question about how it affects my work, I would say I definitely approach it differently than others because of that lack of communication or inability to communicate directly with other people. I have to communicate through gestures, to point at my camera and just say, "can I take the photo?" using gestures. I think that influences my work in some way as far as that lack of communication.
‘For me, authenticity is critical. I like to see what's happening at that very moment. I don't want to change it. I don't want it to be posed or forced. I want it to be candid, and I want to be able to tell the story authentically.’
The Right Angle
Nastasia: Seeing different colors around the states, in terms of the scenery, and meeting new people, probably affects your work. I noticed in your various projects like Eight Seconds, 20,310 feet, and Schedule I — that you're working a lot with lights and shadows. There's this warm feeling in your work. I also love the angles you choose, which bring you inside the photograph, so you become curious about what is the story there. What usually catches your eye when you're on location? How do you decide what to photograph and in which way, choosing the right angle?
Chad: I look at other people's work a lot. I have a large collection of saved photos on Instagram. I browse through photo books often. Their composition and angles help me with ideas and inspirations. It helps me see what they’re seeing and make it into my own. You can train your eye to see what your favorite photographers are seeing, and so this is something very important to me. For me, authenticity is critical. I like to see what's happening at that very moment. I don't want to change it. I don't want it to be posed or forced. I want it to be candid, and I want to be able to tell the story authentically.
Nastasia: I think you’re successfully doing that. I love the angles you choose and the authenticity. I feel that you found something that is your own.
Chad: Thank you!
‘If I see people, I want to take pictures of them, but the landscape is an important part of that individual's life. It's not just what's happening with them as a person, but what’s happening around them. So to tell a story, I like to use a mixture of portraits, people, and landscapes.’
Landscapes & People
Nastasia: I think there is something different going on in your photographs. It is inspiring to see those people and how you present them. Today I went through your Instagram, and I saw a post from 2017. There's this house, and you write about sneaking out at 3 am, worried that somebody will catch you. So you were photographing landscapes, then you moved to photograph people. With your portraits, you bring something real about the person, and the situation suggests that they might not even know you're photographing them. And now I've seen a lot of video stories that you are doing. How would you describe your development from landscape to portraits to film? What is more interesting for you?
Chad: You know, I'm not just doing portraits all the way or just doing landscapes. I really love to do both. If I see people, I want to take pictures of them, but the landscape is an important part of that individual's life. It's not just what's happening with them as a person, but what’s happening around them. So to tell a story, I like to use a mixture of portraits, people, and landscapes. And that's important to me.
Nastasia: Do you think you will continue the houses project about the houses?
Chad: Yes. I'm actually working on that. I mean, it's a slow process, but I do have 4-5 series that I'm working on right now. I'm kind of all over the place, but I think this is how I work: little pieces at the time — surely but slowly.
Snowboarding
Nastasia: If we come back to the snowboarding topic: it leads me to think about the skills one needs to snowboard. When we were speaking about those heights, to do the route, you need to be physically strong. In what way developing these skills can affect you as a photographer? Are those skills connected?
Chad: Oh yeah, I definitely think they are connected. My journey hasn't been an easy one, obviously. I have communication barriers all the time. Through snowboarding, I had to figure out how to communicate in my own way. I learned that it is important to network. I learned how to communicate with people. I had to have thick skin to get where I wanted. I had to be determined to get what I wanted, and that is required in the field. Through these kinds of experiences, I’ve learned that everybody is willing to let you take a photo of them more than you think. You'll get some YESes, and some NOs, but there are nice people out there, and you can't always get what you want. Sometimes it takes a while to do that. I had times when I had to do three days of shooting and then look at the images and think that I got nothing out of the three day's shoot. I have to accept that because this is part of the process. With snowboarding, I moved forward with other snowboarders and learned how to accept some of that rejection. And it's OK. Some of those things just don't work out in the end.
Nastasia: It absolutely builds your spirit. Photographers so often share that they can shoot 100 images and then realize they have nothing and have to start over. You need to build resilience. And the snowboarding experience seems to help with that.
Chad: Yeah, for sure! And also to have faith and believe in myself. Sometimes, it comes down to those little voices inside your head.
‘It's truly through what I see. It's rarely something I actually plan for. Even if I'm on the roof when I see something, I will just shoot it from that angle. It's not like I'm standing on the ground and thinking I need to be on that roof. It's not my thinking process.’
The Moment
Nastasia: I want to speak with you about your technique, I think you are an observer. When I look at your images and your stories on Instagram, you're very aware of the surroundings, and you're finding those moments that you want to share with the audience. It seems you're working very hard to catch the moment, to build a frame that you want, to tell the story.
With Instagram stories, the most interesting part is that there's no sound. It is a different experience for me. I realized that my other senses emerged, and my imagination tried to figure out what would be the scent in the streets of Morocco, what were those people thinking about, and what were they doing? Like this guy working with leather, the frame is zoomed out, and you're starting to think about what is his day-to-day life. You become much more connected to your imagination. What is your technique to tell the story, catch the moment, stop at the right time and decide to take a picture or a video?
Chad: That's a good question. Like I said before, it's very natural to me, I'm not trying to change anything, and that's my end goal. It's just to keep that as it is at that moment. For example, if I see something I cannot tell through photography, then I will use the moving picture option. Sometimes I think you just cannot tell all those stories through photos.
Nastasia: Speaking about this ability to create a frame, you need to figure out if you should use zoom in or zoom out and choose the right angle. It is about catching the story with your eye and then deciding how to tell it, changing the reality a little bit, and showing it slightly differently in the way you want to present it. What is the main story that you want to tell with your photography?
Chad: It's truly through what I see. It's rarely something I actually plan for. Even if I'm on the roof when I see something, I will just shoot it from that angle. It's not like I'm standing on the ground and thinking I need to be on that roof. It's not my thinking process — it's what I find being on the roof already when I see that opportunity. So it's often not planned but what I see at the moment. I feel like as I bring those together, I can see that they tell some kind of a story.
What’s Next
Nastasia: And the last question to close the interview: what are you currently working on, or what is your next planned project?
Chad: I have four or five different series that I'm working on. They are all very different, and I'm working on all of them simultaneously. I'm all over the place with each of them, but I'm getting there slowly. My hope is for some kind of zine or a photo book that I'm really happy and proud of. I hope I will be able to do that soon.
Nastasia: Good luck with that, and once you have your photo book let us know.
Chad: Oh, yeah, absolutely! Thank you so much for this interview. I really appreciate it.
Nastasia: Thank you so much, Chad. I’m happy for this opportunity to discuss your work!
