This week, in an effort to move away from some of our more notable musical acts, we at Nexus decided that we would go out of our way to interview the endlessly talented photographer/artist/Dad-extraordinaire, Buchanan (real name? Not sure). With some of the most incredible uses of the colour beige we’ve ever seen, Buchanan has been wowing Instagram viewers for the last few years with some of his most aesthetic imagery being at the forefront of his well designed feed.
N: Let’s start off easy. You’ve been making content online since 2019 (as per your instagram feed), how have you found your online presence?
B: It’s grown pretty organically, which I like. It’s an extension of me, the things I find interesting, and a little bit of vanity thrown in the mix. So it’s all quite personal and a little daunting to share sometimes.
I didn’t have the internet for the first 4 years I lived in NZ; we didn’t have much money, so while I’ve had a profile for some time, I’ve only been posting and engaging for the last few years. Recently, folks have started reaching out, asking me to do some work and collaborate with them, which is quite humbling and a nice challenge.
N: Your mahi faces kōrero surrounding living within Aotearoa and Ireland; do you have a place you call home? How have you found yourself within the world?
B: I am a Northern Irish man, of which I’m very proud. I come from a long line of Irish and Scots-Irish heritage. In fact my ‘gram name is actually a mixture of both family names, Buchanan & Coulter. I always wanted to have a pen name, so my mini goal in life has been ticked off.
But oddly, I did require travel and the leaving of my homeland to truly find myself. It was a peculiar time to almost reinvent myself. No one knows the old me, not the stupid teenager I was, nor the reckless kid down the street that I once was. This has been a super interesting social experiment of sorts. But having the ability to refine and re-look at myself, my values, my hobbies and pastimes. It’s been quite freeing actually!
N: There’s balanced compositions in your works, with high regard to colour and balance, where do you pull from for inspirations?
B: My earliest memories of photography are of my mother. She was no photographer, but rather a memories capturer, which sounds dark and minaical, but more simply she took photos of EVERYTHING. Those warm, little bit fuzzy, moments in time that your mum had shoe boxes full of in her wardrobe. I have such fond memories of emptying the box on the floor and going through them. Photos of my mum in Marbella in the 70s with some guy that’s not my dad, family holidays, old pictures of great grandparents, a photo of a long dead cat with shiny red eyes, random photos of my childhood garden, birthdays, Christmas mornings, Uncle Tommy clearly having a smoke outside, but caught in the middle of trying to hide it. Then flipping the photo over and reading a brief description and year it was taken.
My goal has been to emulate that nostalgia, to capture that feeling of picking up an old photo of a forgotten moment and enjoying it briefly once more. WARM, FUZZY, NOSTALGIC!
N: As a dad (congratulations), do you find your works being influenced by your tamariki? Has your mahi changed at all since?
B: I wish I could say yes, as that would be so noble and cute. I love my kids dearly, but my work is an extension of me. If anything, I would want them to look at my work, and have it encourage them to explore what it is they want to share with the world. Having two strong, fiery, strong-willed girls, time is often at a premium, but I love sharing photography with my girls, taking them on adventures and helping them explore their place in the world.
N: Colour is a distinguishing factor in your works, do you have a specific approach when it comes to creating?
B: I love beige tones, I’ve always found them super attractive, so I try to make that my muse. WARM
I love movement and the idea of capturing something in a brief passing moment. FUZZY
And I want the photos to look timeless. I love the low contrast in old photos and the heat and grain, so try to make my photos look that way. NOSTALGIC
N: Home is an important kōrero to have, and we know it’s weird as to think about, but when you think of home – what does that mean for you?
B: When I think of home I think of a few drastically different things. On one hand I think of my partner and children, a place where I feel the most myself, most accepted, and the most allowed to be wrong.
On the other hand, when I think of home, I think of the wild and ancient Atlantic coast of Irealnd. A cold wind in the air, the smell of the seaside and stale cigarettes, the sound of seagulls overhead, Van Morrison, and Seamus Heaney.
One I miss, always, and the other I yearn for daily.
N: At the end of it all, what would you want to achieve from being an artist? Is there an emotion you want to evoke?
B: I’m not sure I’d call myself an artist. I want photos to be a true expression of me, the things I love, and the things I want to communicate. But mostly, I want to invoke feelings of Nostalgia, looking back fondly on moments and memories captured in motion.
