Online

How to Talk and Write About Your Work

with Jean Miele

Online registration for this program has closed. To check availability, find out about future dates, or if you would like further information, please call 505-983-1400 ext. 111. Also, get the SFW E-Newsletter for updates!

Sign-up for the Newsletter:

Course Description

Do you get stuck when people ask you what kind of photography you do? Does the prospect of writing an artist statement fill you with dread? In this online workshop with Jean “Gino” Miele you learn to describe your work in a direct and meaningful way.

As you discover how to avoid the twin pitfalls of literal and technical description, as well as the dreaded “artspeak,” you begin to understand the critical difference between a superficial description of what your photographs depict (what they’re of) and the more subtle—and infinitely more interesting—reasons you have for making them (what they’re about).

We focus on recognizing the underlying themes in your work, separate and distinct from the subject. Conversations, exercises, and portfolio reviews help each participant determine and express what genuinely matters to them. The goal isn’t creating a single piece of writing; it’s training yourself to talk and write about your work powerfully and effectively.

Participants complete the workshop confident in what to say (and not say) when presenting a portfolio, with a body of writing that forms a foundation for artist statements and other documents, plus an array of great responses to the question, “What do you photograph?”

As you deepen your understanding of your own work, you learn to engage people as dynamically with your words as you do with your pictures.

Additional Information

WHO SHOULD ATTEND:

Open to photographers interested in this unique program.

Policies:

View Withdrawal and Transfer Policies for online programs.

For the convenience of participants, recordings of each class session are posted privately for one month after the end of each session. Santa Fe Workshops takes the recordings down after one month to protect the intellectual property of our instructors.

Categories
One-of-a-Kind, Professional Development, Writers Lab
about
Jean Miele

Jean “Gino” Miele’s photographs explore the borderlands between fiction and reality, and reflect his lifelong interest in perception, spirituality, and mysticism. His images remind us that moments of perfection are possible, and that we create our own reality. He believes every photograph is an act of transformation, and that the photographs we make tell us more about ourselves than about what was in front of the lens.

Gino’s photographs have appeared in thousands of publications. His artwork has been exhibited internationally and acquired by collectors worldwide. Gino has taught at Santa Fe Workshops since 2003. His primary goals are to demystify digital technique and empower students to realize their own photographic vision.

Website: jeanmiele.com

Instagram: @jean_miele

How to Talk and Write About Your Work

January 20 – February 6, 2025

You May Also Like

Web Design for Photographers

with Cotton Miller

March 12 – April 9, 2025

The Art of the Short Film

with Carlan Tapp

April 5 – 23, 2025

The Art of Abstract Photography: A Creative Retreat in Santa Fe

with Renee Lynn, Stephanie Johnson, Richard Martin, and Guests

May 20 – 23, 2025

The Magic of Polaroid: Live from New York City

with Jari Poulin

May 15 – 18, 2025
– Summer Season

The Handmade Artist Book

with Diana Bloomfield

July 28 – August 1, 2025
– Summer Season

Creative Cold Wax and Oil Painting for Photographers

with Jill Skupin Burkholder

July 14 – 18, 2025

Day of the Dead in Oaxaca

with Marcela Taboada

October 29 – November 3, 2025

Landscape and the Story of Place

with Christina Selby

April 7 – 11, 2025

The Magical Mobile Darkroom: Applications and Techniques for Crafting Compelling Images on Your Mobile Device

with Shelley Vandegrift

May 10, 2025

Sketchbook Practices for Photographers

with Kelly Webeck

March 8 – April 12, 2025
– Summer Season

Architectural Photography: Beauty and Structure

with Nick Merrick

July 7 – 11, 2025

Get Seen: Submitting Your Work to Competitions, Festivals, and Galleries

with Sonia Goydenko

March 22 and 29, 2025

Emotions and the Ephemeral World of Florals

with Leanne Trivett S.

April 1 – 29, 2025

The Art of Abstract Photography: A Creative Retreat in San Miguel de Allende

with Renee Lynn, Stephanie Johnson, Philip Sager, and Guests

October 6 – 10, 2025

The Wedding Storyteller

with Roberto Valenzuela

April 5 and 12, 2025
– Summer Season

Documentary Storytelling

with Matt Black

July 21 – 25, 2025