Rob Verbeck

I started taking pictures in 1974, using the Kodak 110 Instamatic that I’d begged my parents to buy me for my 10th birthday. Over time I progressed through a series of better equipment, but for most of my life I saw the camera only as a tool to chronicle life as it was; trips, special occasions, family events, etc. (and as a tool for avoiding social interaction at such events). I had fun with my cameras (and have always loved taking pictures just for the enjoyment of doing it), but never considered them as a vehicle for artistic expression. At some point I came across the work of photographers like Ruth Orkin, Robert Frank, Duane Michaels, Elliot Erwitt, and Bernice Abbott. I was awed by their artistry, but still looked at what they did as something completely alien to what I was doing or ever could do. One of the biggest struggles that I face as an elementary school teacher is helping my students get past their own roadblocks (“I’m not good at math,” “I can’t write well,” “I’m not a good artist,” etc.). I work hard to show them that we all have many seeds inside us that can grow and thrive if we recognize and water them. It took a long time, but with encouragement from my wife and from photographers and artists I’ve met in recent years, I finally began to apply those lessons to myself and my photography. I still feel slightly uncomfortable using the word artist to describe myself, but I embrace that discomfort as part of this journey and I look forward to discovering where it takes me.