Brandon Bakus

Born in Southern California, I relocated every few years with my family for my fathers work. Growing up with constant change and fleeting experiences, photography ended up being a natural solution for me; the ability to contain something, to keep it and remember it as it was. I ultimately attended Ringling College in Florida, and studied briefly in Florence, Italy – where I first encountered the Hasselblad V system, which has been my preferred camera ever since. Since graduating I have been working as a freelance photographer, assistant and digital technician in New York City.

Vagabond

“I photograph to see what something looks like photographed” – I don’t think I have ever related more to another photographer as I do Gary Winogrand, in this way. This concept, paired with my travels as a child, and my continued travels as an adult, lead me to this project: an exploration in Nomadism across the U.S.
These images were shot during two separate cross-country road-trips and explore feelings of isolation and displacement, coupled with themes akin to a cowboy-esque tamed wilderness. The title of Vagabond not only refers to the subjects, but also to myself and the camera. It speaks to both the photographer and the machine, and implies that the images are the gaze of a traveling voyeur, of sorts, collecting scraps or a world overwhelmed by its own nostalgia.

To view more of Brandon’s work please visit his website.