As a conceptual street and documentary photographer, Korean-American Argus Paul Estabrook approaches his craft as imbuing images with ideas that he can’t put into words. This allows him to add a touch of surrealism to the scenes and events he captures, which essentially aligns with his goal to “express something that exists in the space before words.” He also sees it as a response to his desire to draw out emotions here and now, instead of merely depicting or representing something.
“Actually, I think I want to express something that exists in the space before words, which is why I think music exists. I’ve often wished my photographs were more like music, evoking a direct, time-based emotional response rather than just depicting or representing something. That’s the transcendence I yearn for. I want my work to be felt firsthand, in the present tense, rather than as a substitution for a memory.”
Estabrook’s photography journey began in high school, then progressed to studying lens-based art while earning his MFA in Studio Arts at James Madison University. Now based in South Korea, he has since been documenting life in the country, using candid moments to explore the intersections of identity, race, and politics. Among the accolades for his work include recognition from Magnum Photography Awards, Sony World Photography Awards, LensCulture, BJP, and Life Framer’s Street Life Award (judged by Bruce Gilden).
Embracing duality and photographing as a “Half-Eye”
The more you get to know Estabrook, the more you see that his personal and creative life are full of dualities. The most obvious is his racial heritage as an Asian American, which is a source of both frustration and inspiration for his work.
Growing up in the USA, he unfortunately experienced heavy racism, both systemic and unnecessarily physical and violent. Even in Korea, his Gyopo status (born in Korea but raised overseas and biracial) keeps him from being accepted by some locals as a legitimate Korean. “Everywhere you go there seem to be people who want to build fences around you,” he laments.
“So, we make do with the limitations placed on us and find our strength within. For me, that means considering myself a ‘Half-Eye.’ When I photograph, half of me looks out at the world while the other half looks inside myself. Being a ‘Half-Eye’ is about embracing duality,” he said of his personal and creative approach to experiencing and documenting life.
“As a biracial photographer, I strive to understand who I am in this strange river of life. I choose to use my camera’s viewfinder in a way that is both open and reflective all at once. I am here to learn. I am a seeker.”
Another manifestation of this duality is his choice to present his work in both color and black and white. Some photographers may swear by black and white as the “classic” way to do street photography. Others see color as an indispensable element for adding an extra dimension to their visual narrative. But for Estabrook, choosing one over the other for his work has more to do with sensibility than anything else.
“Some might feel black and white constrains the type of photographs one can produce, and in a way, that’s true, but I find it very freeing and flexible. Finding ways to do more with less is a fun puzzle. Then there’s color photography, which for me, is simply more playful and innocent. I can tell jokes in color, which I find harder to do in black and white. When I shoot color in Korea, I try to use a palette inspired by hanbok. I like to give a nod to Korean traditional clothing. I want to eat up the warm pinks, sky blues, and greens I find here.”
Copyright ⓒ Argus Paul Estabrook
Copyright ⓒ Argus Paul Estabrook
Copyright ⓒ Argus Paul Estabrook
Not a “decisive moment” kind of guy
“Decisive Moment” is one of the most popular terms and ideologies tied to street photography. So, it’s easy to assume that Estabrook has also found a way to integrate it into his creative process. However, his creative process is more about “choosing an image that best expresses how his inner space feels aligned with the external world” than hunting for the moment.
In a nutshell, he described this as feeling “more like a fisherman with a small, narrow net who waits patiently where the fish might be.” His full explanation perhaps provides us the best way to understand why he doesn’t completely align with Henri Cartier-Bresson’s famous philosophy despite citing him as a major creative influence:
“To be honest, I’m not sure I’m really a ‘decisive moment’ type of guy. It’s such a funny term and might be taken too seriously. Obviously, as photographers, we want to capture ‘THE’ moment, but some of us seem to enjoy hunting for it more than others. That’s fine. I just feel I’m more like a fisherman with a small, narrow net who waits patiently where the fish might be. I want to feel the water in the stream more than catch the fish, which is probably not a good thing to admit.
Copyright ⓒ Argus Paul Estabrook
Copyright ⓒ Argus Paul Estabrook
Copyright ⓒ Argus Paul Estabrook
Influence over idolization
Likewise, Estabrook doesn’t subscribe to the idea of calling iconic street photographers “heroes,” especially in the “golden age of Instagram and TikTok.” “It makes the water murky, and there’s no reason to have muddy shoes,” he added. “That’s harder to do when we fall in love with the idea of a person instead of the person.”
More comfortable with calling these esteemed photographers as influences, he names William Eggleston as his favorite; and Joel Sternfeld (for his firefighter and pumpkins for sale photos), Jerry Uelsmann (for his “alchemy”), and Duane Michals (for his storytelling) as his top-of-mind personalities. For street photography, he cites Robert Frank, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and Gary Winogrand as his “usual suspects.” In the realm of documentary photography, Charles Peterson’s photographs of Nirvana and the Seattle music scene are imprinted in his brain, describing the experience of seeing those photos for the first time as “like being a baby bird that just hatched.”
As with many other photographers, Estabrook also finds inspiration in other creative disciplines. Apart from his love for 1970s color formalism, he is also moved by the philosophy of photographer Frederick Sommer (particularly, in The Poetic Logic of Art & Aesthetics), and the musings of art critic, novelist, and painter John Berger.
Never enough time for street photography
As with many photographers who take on full-time day jobs to support their creative life, Estabrook feels that he never has enough time for street photography. Carving out time and staying in tune, he said, has been the real challenge to his work, compared to being out and about shooting. He considers this as one of the many interruptions in his creative process, which he tries to overcome as best as he can.
“I aim to get out at least once a week, but it’s depressing to think that only amounts to about 52 days a year. Bringing my camera along when I’m out and about helps capture the unexpected, but I usually only get one full day of shooting each week.”
“Some people think creativity can be turned on and off like a switch, which is frustrating. It’s like, ‘Hold on, I have an hour before bed—let me just tap into the universe and create something special.’ But hey, an hour is an hour, right? I’ll take it if it’s the only thing on the menu. Who knows maybe I’ll push for another hour after that… and that’s exactly why I struggle with insomnia.”
Copyright ⓒ Argus Paul Estabrook
The street as a metaphor for life
Most of us see the streets as a treasure trove of visual stories waiting to be uncovered and told. But for Estabrook, he sees it more as a metaphor for life, which he documents with mindfulness and openness.
“I don’t like to make big plans when I shoot; I just listen and go where I hear signs of life. Maybe something exciting is happening there. I like to capture energy and process the experience of the situation. If I’m in a noisy place, I sometimes try to find the quiet and photograph that. As a photographer, discovering the unnoticed and articulating it is a joy.”
As a storyteller at heart, he also views his photography as a process of “taking something out of context and then re-contextualizing it with a personal understanding.” This way, he is able to paint his own take on life as it unfolds — rooted in reality but also steeped in his personal truths and internal perceptions.
“I try to be patient when dealing with reality. As a storyteller, I write using photographs and I keep in mind that ‘Life is a tragedy when seen in closeup, but a comedy in long shot.’ Also, ‘There is nothing good or bad, but thinking makes it so.’ That’s good to remember. Whoever said that had a way with words.”
Make sure to visit Argus Paul Estabrook’s website and follow him on Instagram (@arguspaul) to see more of his work.
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The Interview was by Joy Celine Asto for Street Photography ( Dot ) Com