apnl 1.2005 » jUSt OUt 37
ART
▼
ortland photographer Serena Davidson
exudes calm.
P
Her presence tends to sixithe those
around her, she says, in a voice that is
steady and thoughtful, her words care
fully selected.
The daughter of generations of Jehovah’s
Witness ministers, her early focus was to
become a missionary, and she began life as a
minister by age 19.
“I was in the center of my congregation,”
says Davidson, “but I wasn’t happy. There was
something inside of me that started saying,
‘This isn’t working.’ ”
Heavily restricted by the insular life of devo
tion, strict sanctity and a religion that frowned
on pop culture, Davidson had no idea what was
on the outside. "1 didn’t have to make any deci
sions about who 1 was or who 1 wanted to be.
Those decisions were all made for me based on
the religious track that I was on.”
As long as she can remember, Davidson has
had a’passion for art. Although this passion was
never encouraged by her family, who felt that
her energy would be best focused on religious
studies, she continued to consider art an impor
tant part of her life.
Her parents owned a family portrait studio,
which gave her access to photographic equip-
Body and soul
Forsaking life as a Jehovah’s Witness minister, Serena
Davidson turned to photography for salvation
by J odi
ment and allowed her to learn enough skills to
take a great picture as early as age 7. At 19, she
was asked to photograph a cousin’s wedding.
“She loved the photos,” says Davidson,
“and it really made me realize how much 1
knew about photography without even realiz
ing I had learned so much. Still, I didn’t really
consider myself a photographer until five years
ago when I became professional."
After high schixil, Davidson enrolled in Cor
nish College of the Arts in Seattle and found
herself overwhelmed by a previously unattain
able freedom. “1 felt like I was finally able to ask
myself the question, ‘What do 1 want? ”
While in the Emerald City, Davidson left
the religion. “It was like a leap into the abyss.
1 had no support at that point, especially not
from my family, and the whole thing was really
pretty horrifying. One of the only things I knew
for sure was that I wanted to pursue my art.”
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D arby
Davidson threw herself into artistic
expression and explored the parts of herself
that had been hidden. She remembers ques
tioning her sexuality in her early 20s but
feeling that she could go no further in enter
taining that thought. “1 wasn’t allowed to date
boys when 1 was growing up, much less girls,”
she laughs.
Leaving the religion gave her the opportu
nity to access different parts of herself, which
included coming out as queer. Photography
aided in that process.
Today Davidson continues to explore. Her
goal: to create a lifestyle that centers on the
spirituality of the creative process. Her portrait
photography conveys an obvious care for the
subject, and the genuine expression that people
reveal in front of her camera is unique and
enticing to the viewer.
“When you are photographing someone, it’s
a very revealing experience. You’re allowed to
interact with people on a very different level
than you would in your regular day-to-day
experiences.”
Davidson’s interest in people as individuals
translates from the years of volunteer Bible
teaching work she engulfed herself in while
growing up, and her ministry skills have had a
direct impact on her art.
“It can be very intimidating to get your por-
trait done,” admits Davidson. But she adds:
“Compared to encouraging people to comfort
ably talk about their most intimate spiritual
beliefs, getting them to relax in front of a cam
era is easy.”
At one time, Serena Davidson’s life was
dedicated to capturing souls. Today she still
captures souls, but in a different way—one that
allows her own spiritual goals to unfold for
themselves'. jm
S erena D avidson is showing her photographs in
collaboration with My Ide Hansen through April 30
at The Fresh Pot, 4001 N. Mississippi Ave. Meet
the artist 3 p.m. April 10. For more information
visit www.zeitgeistphoto.com.
J odi D arby is a Portland writer, activist and radio
producer.
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