The interviews are conducted by VB Contemporary's director, Vian Borchert. Besides being a multidisciplinary noted international artist. Borchert has been a writer and art critic for over a decade contributing with art articles in a national online newspaper within the U.S.A. Borchert gets called upon to cover and write reviews for major retrospectives and exhibitions in world-class American museums. Borchert is also the Art Lead / curator of the art segment for "Oxford Public Philosophy Journal" for the Turn 5 issue - "Oxford Public Philosophy" is a philosophy journal based at Oxford University, UK. The journal is a space for critically questioning what philosophy is and how we're doing it, in form and content. 

Interview with Eric Hajjar

Image of Artist Eric Hajjar
About the artist: Eric Hajjar began his career in visual storytelling as a photographer and graphic designer. Armed with various film and digital cameras, Eric has traveled both domestically and internationally, focusing mostly on candid street photography. Eric’s work has been displayed in publications as well as galleries in LA, NY, Miami, and Las Vegas.
Tell us about your "Beginnings", how did you start your artist/photographer journey? When did you know that you wanted to become a photographer? How did your childhood influence your photography career path?  If we want to go way back...I would say that it really began when my dad brought home a Sony camcorder in the late 1980’s. He brought it to capture family moments, but I soon discovered it was a gateway to make my own little commercials and short films. It wasn’t long before using a camera became a frequent habit for me, and I really got attached to seeing the world through the eye of a lens. Later I would discover an even bigger payoff…which was sharing my short films with friends and family. Just seeing people laugh or smile at something I made was incredibly fun for me. It was a feeling I would find myself chasing for the rest of my life, more or less.
Image of artwork Macro Iris
Walk us through your day and creative process? What does a day for "Eric Hajjar" look like? Where do you find inspiration in the area by which you reside? These days I find myself writing more and more. I’m working on a screenplay right now that I’m very happy with. I plan on directing this one as well. Still, I definitely take some time every week to go capture some images with one of my cameras. A lot of times that process will be spontaneous. I’ll be driving and see something that I think could make a cool photo. I’ll inevitably have to pull over, get out of the car, and capture it. Sometimes I shoot on film, sometimes digital…whatever is convenient at the moment. Then, of course, it’s back to my computer for color correction or some elevated design stuff. No matter what format…it always seems to come down to storytelling. Whether I'm writing, shooting, or editing…I’m always conveying some sort of a story to a willing audience. I’m always looking to make that connection with someone…sharing my point of view with them. To me, this sort of “conversation” with an audience is very rewarding.
As a fine art photographer, what have been some of the biggest challenges you've faced in your career? And, what have been your best achievements for you personally and professionally? I would say the challenges really came in the early days, in regards to getting a widespread audience to see my work. Furthermore, being comfortable with a widespread audience seeing my work. It takes time to learn how to accept feedback from an audience, good or bad. A lot of times, as an artist, you feel like you’re bearing your soul, so to speak. There’s a certain amount of vulnerability that comes with being an artist. Sometimes that takes getting used to. Also, it takes a lot of hustle to get your work in front of people who can help get it seen in a larger market. Gallery owners and art dealers are constantly flooded with new artists hoping to get their work seen. Going out and trying to market your own work can be difficult. It’s essential to align yourself with a proper dealer or gallery. Making the right impression on the right people can feel daunting at times. Looking back, I would say one of my biggest achievements was selling a large, framed piece of my work in a "Philips De Pury" auction in NYC. This was indeed a big piece, I think the horizontal length was around 8ft. The piece was entered into the auction through a gallery I was working with at the time, in Los Angeles. That particular gallery also helped me to get my work into the homes of some celebrities as well.
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