Images by Jonathan Lovett
Through the colonization of nature, human beings are often seen as separate and above the natural environment. The earth is a reservoir of natural resources that are readily exploited when profit is a primary incentive. The decolonization of nature suggests we rethink and cancel the need to view nature through a subject-object relationship. To reimagine the way we take up space in the natural world.
Jonathan Lovett is a film and digital photography queer artist based in New York City. He's currently studying at Parsons School of Design, creating photographic work that disrupts the heteronormative viewpoints of nature and removes the need to assert dominance over natural land.
His recent project, "What Grows Inside Us", centers around the decolonization of nature through a queer ecological lens to tell the story of taking up space in a place that queer people are often excluded from.
Lovett's work displays a colorful, dream-like reality, which he believes displays the tenderness in queer interactions with the natural world. Lovett sat down with Photographers Without Borders (PWB) to discuss his work as an artist and what decolonizing nature looks like to him.
PWB: What got you into photography?
Lovett: I've been taking photos forever. But initially, I got a pinhole camera about seven to eight years ago and absolutely loved it. It made me think about photography more as an art form, rather than just a form of documentation, where you’re using light to create the final project.
Images by Jonathan Lovett
PWB: How would you describe your photographic style?
Lovett: I would say very vivid. I'm definitely not afraid to use bright colors, but I try to make my photos very soft and tender. I feel like that’s putting myself into the images. I've also been told that my images are nostalgic. That's not ever my intention, really, but I definitely try to make my images warm.
PWB: How was your experience creating "What Grows Inside Us" in Storytelling for Change school?
Lovett: I loved it! Right before School, I felt uninspired and didn't want to take photos. I hated that. I just wanted to stay in bed all day and do nothing. But Storytelling School helped inspire me because I got to see what other people were working on.
I received new perspectives into my work and loved to see everyone else's work, to collaborate and feel that energy flowing. It really helped me create new things.
PWB: Can you share more about the inspiration for your project?
Lovett: My inspiration comes from nature and from my close, chosen queer family, like my boyfriend, his friends and my close friends.
I grew up in a city and went into nature as a kid. But recently, I started adventuring out into nature to do something in a time where there wasn't much to do. And I felt that I wasn't completely welcome in that space. That felt strange because nature isn't a place where someone should feel like they don't belong. Everyone belongs there. So I started to research, and I discovered this entire field of queer ecology that goes hand-in-hand with decolonizing nature.
Through colonization of nature, we've put it into heteronormative boxes that we use to describe our society and civilization. I feel like that's why queer people are considered to be unnatural. It’s because people think that queerness doesn't exist within nature, which is so wrong and false.
I wanted to lean away from that notion and show a queer interaction with nature through "What Grows Inside Us." To show that our interactions can be very tender and non-imposing. We're not trying to dominate over nature, but simply be there and experience nature.
Images by Jonathan Lovett
PWB: What does it feel like when you spend time outdoors?
Lovett: When I see people outdoors, they often give me a weird look if I'm holding my boyfriend's hand. It's as if to say, “What are you doing here?” or “You can’t handle the outdoors.”
With the project, I started to think about how nature has become a place where cisgender, straight men dominate to prove their masculinity. And that's why queer people, within a natural space, are so threatening. It threatens the whole falsehood of masculinity and domination over nature. Just because you can climb a big rock doesn't mean you're better than the land itself.
PWB: What does ‘decolonizing the outdoors’ mean for you?
With my work, I focused on nature through the queer perspective. But there are so many things that need to happen. Through the colonization of the outdoors, we've purged the outdoors of all Native and Indigenous people. That disrupted the ecology. When the white colonizers, with the Manifest Destiny idea, came upon a huge scene—let’s say, the Grand Canyon or Yosemite—and thought, “Oh, all of this is mine,” it was so dangerous for nature.
Those decisions need to be actively dismantled by queer people, two-spirit people, Indigenous people, people of color and everyone who takes up space within natural areas. If you're going into nature to prove something about yourself, you're probably doing it for the wrong reasons.
Once I unlearned that I had to prove my worthiness of being outdoors, I could simply be in that space. My way of interacting with nature now is no less valid than how any straight person interacts with nature, and it's probably less harmful.
Images by Jonathan Lovett
PWB: Does love influence your images? What does love mean to you?
Lovett: Love definitely influences my images. There are many different types of love. There's the love that I feel for my partner, which is evident in the photos I take of him. But there's also the love I feel for all of my friends and my family, which is very strong but different. I don’t think you can spread your love too thin. As humans, we can keep making new love. We don’t have to subtract love from people to give it to others.
Love is respect. Love is giving people you're photographing agency over how they’re being perceived. It's making sure there’s always an open dialogue. Knowing that any moment could be your last is important because it helps you stay observant, grateful and loving of the people and places around you.
To see Jonathan's work, follow him on Instagram @j.lovettt. You can also find more information on Storytelling School and what upcoming sessions are available.
