it is an international conflict, i think, of parents not wanting their children to become artists, for a variety of reasons. and some just say: okay, it's your own life.

in my family nobody said anything bad about me studying art. I was never employed, i worked as a photographer to survive, which is very easy once you learn the technique. but being paid for my work sufficiently took many hard years.

How was your university experience?

i studied straight photo technique for two years, and spent six years as an art student. it all happened in munich.

german schools are usually well equipped and you could work all day if you wanted to. the limitation is more inside of every student. the more active you are, the more fun it is to study art. that way you can get to know your soul mates and have fun with them. this is key: discussing and working hard and a lot.

the wish to do good photographs never left me. this is the motor: creating really good images.

Are you still constantly looking for work, commission, projects…?

always.

How does being in the business of visual production change human interactions? Do you feel judged (or encouraged) by the way you look, not just the way the photos look?

the definition of an artist is basically created by society. and it is the opposite of what simple people do: they go to work for at least eight hours a day (artists work sometimes), they have one wife (we always have a lot to make us creative) and they get paid some money at the end of the month (artists get chunks of money for some work), and so on. i survive pretty well.

there are days where i feel really weak and then the judgement of others sucks. usually i am fine and do not care. i cannot care so much about what other people want me to look like. i just try to follow my ideas, no matter what it takes.

One of your current projects is photographing the construction site of the new Museum of Modern Art in NY. Is it exciting to work with MoMA?

yes. it is a strange project. we are together for such a long period of time (with preparations and so forth, it will be almost six years) which is very unusual. the photo department has almost become an extension of my family, since i go there twice a year to check my cameras.

What do you want to do next?

more photographs in Brazil.

for more photographs and more explicit explanations of the technique and intent of the works, www.wesely.org.

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