2026 05 07
Bobcat Goldtwait. Chicago, Illinois. June 2023. © Clayton Hauck
Here’s another shot from my new zine, Daily Bread. Bobcat is a lot of fun and it was an honor to get to photograph him. I think we got some nice frames from our brief time together (including some of him pooping in the famed clown bathroom at Lincoln Lodge). Two unrelated thoughts come to mind:
Portraits like this one, an editorial image made on assignment, are not commonly seen in photobooks for many reasons. I decided to ignore this in a few instances in the book, as the focus is a compare and contrast between my personal and for-hire photography. My main aim in these printed book projects which I am now focusing much of my efforts on is not to create portfolio pieces showing off my own photogrpahy skills, but to create an art piece that stands on its own, tells a story, and creates meaning and emotion for the viewer. Moving forward, it’s unlikly images like this will make it into my upcoming books.
I want to give a copy of my book to all of the humans that are included in its pages. There are fifteen people, which is partly why I ended up printing 130 copies instead of the 100 I did last time. I’ll need to track down Bobcat and get him his copy sometime, though doubt he will be very much interested. Maybe I’m wrong! Another person featured in the book is Chicago’s previous mayor, Lori Lightfoot. I guess she will get a book as well. That’s fun to think about.
One final thought: in looking back at older posts on this here blog, and my previous printed zine, there’s a lot of eye rolling and cringing at decisions I made that, in hindsight, I now think are silly. This was (I swear) by design! It’s really hard to put yourself out there and stand on work you no longer find impressive. But I think understanding what has changed about you as an artist, and the reasons your perspective has shifted, is what growth is all about. I’m hopeful it will make me a better artist as I continue to focus more of my efforts towards “art” photography — whatever that is.
-Clayton
PS - if anyone knows Lori Lightfoot, put us in touch!
