Justin Quinnell
By Justin Quinnell
I’ve never liked viewfinders. To me It's yet another way the commercial world forces instant answers to ‘shorten the journey’. Viewfinders should stay in your head alongside wonder and imagination. Knowing what will happen spoils the unknown journey each day should bring.
The mouthpiece series was born by accident, realising a camera, I initially built for its indestructibility (the Smileycam), fitted inside my mouth. It was then a simple case of applying my degree in analogue fine art photography with imagining what my mouth could ‘see’ (along with not listening to anyone who didn’t like what I was doing!)
Just before Toe Sucking there was some scandal where a royal was photographed sucking someone’s toes. After several unanswered letters to Buckingham Palace, I did a shoot with my pal Lela who even painted her toes for me.
Much of my work is an exercise in ‘doing’ rather than ‘thinking’.
Maybe it’s just ‘play’.
Maybe that’s all photography really is.
The Exhibition Mouthpiece – 24 images from inside my mouth is available to anyone who can offer travel expenses and a good opening party! Prints are available on my website and include teeth marks.
