Photographer Sasha Maslov moved to Cincinnati last year from Ukraine, where he freelanced for periodicals throughout Eastern Europe. Feralmade (www.feralmade.com) features his Northside Project — portraits of people who live and work in Northside — through Oct. 4. (See more of Maslov’s photographs at www.sashamaslov.com.) Here’s what inspires Maslov. (Tamera Lenz Muente)
People who surround me. They are the main source of thoughts that later become actions or induce me to not take any. Sometimes I imagine myself as a spectator instead of a participant. In any situation, whether buying coffee or talking with a stranger, it’s fun to spin a brief moment in your head. Inspiration for portraits can’t really come from anywhere else but the person you’re photographing. Otherwise, you’re not trying to portray that person. But it all depends on your goal.
The Media. It’s impossible not to be inspired or be affected by it even if you’re a lamppost. It’s not necessarily a “good” influence, but you can’t avoid it. The media tells you how to live, what to eat, where to go, who to talk with. You have to be a complete idiot to believe everything on TV or in newspapers and magazines, yet we still listen to and read people’s opinions. We want to judge other people’s deeds. I am doing this, too, taking someone’s side, growing prejudices and taking my next steps with those prejudices in my head. It’s inspiration, too.
Other photographers’ work. Films, paintings, sculptures, streets, the shapes of objects. Everything. Alcohol. Music. Life itself is an inspiration, even though it’s too hard to explain.
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