MUSÉE MAGAZINE talks with artist/photographer David LaChapelle.

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It was just an insane existence for a while.

But then after a time I knew that it was time to stop.

You've worked your whole life to get to this point.

You have a contract with Vanity Fair and a contract with, you know, Diane Vogt.

You're working, you know, why would you quit?

Because I believed in my heart that it was time to go.

And I wanted young people who were really excited about shooting the next Britney Spears or the next Lindsay Lohan to do that.

Advice I would give to young people, young artists starting out today, number 1 is turn off personal devices, your cell phones, your computers.

I would go there and figure out like my life's problems and my direction by sitting in the woods, you know, and praying and meditating and really trying to get answers and the answers would come, you know, you, they would come but it was in stillness.

When you're a student and you're creative, a lot of times you're good at a lot of things.

You might have a love of photography or a love of visual arts.

So finding that direction, but you have to choose what is that paramount love?

What is that thing that's your most passionate about?

And imagine yourself as would you want to be doing this in your life?

And then you have to say, I'm a photographer or I'm an artist and not be embarrassed about it.

Even if you don't have any photographs, you have to know that those photos are inside of you and that they will be good.

I mean, look at the body where Francesca Woodman left us, you know, and she died so young.

But that girl was in, that's obsession, you know.

So if you're going to dabble, you're not, It's not going to work, you know, unless you want it to be a hobby.

It doesn't have to be your career, you know.

And those are things you have to figure out.

But the only way you can do that is not by asking people or asking your teachers or your parents or your friends or your Facebook friends.

Now I can shoot in the jungle in Hawaii and know when it's right and know how to make scenes work.

And I can come to location scouting and know exactly which angles are going to be the best and for the light.

And I understand that from the years I worked at Traveler.

And the pressure, there's no more pressure than you can ever have working at a wedding.

The most important thing we have to study is art history.

What was once contemporary art in the 80s is now art history.

So even going to galleries today, you're still, that's going to be art history 1 day soon.

And taking as much as you can, school never ends.

I know The new has an allure because it is a reflection of our time right now.

That's what's important about contemporary art, is that it reflects the time that we live in.

That's what makes it so exciting and fascinating, that it is about our time.

But our time is no longer just about the commodity art.

And Our time is no longer just about the art that's made in foundries, and that its value is only because it was made 22 million at auction.

And I think that people, and there's young people who are really hungry for something else, and they're hungry again for poetry and for authenticity, and for work that's not being made just because it's going to fetch a really high price and make them an art star.

You know, they're looking for work that actually speaks to them, that has something to say to them about the time, might shine a little light on the time, not just add to the confusion and the darkness that we live in, but actually give you a little bit of understanding of the time in another way, you


Speaker 0: It was just an insane existence for a while. And I loved it. I loved that insanity and stuff. But then after a time I knew that it was time to stop. And I just felt, I saw all the signs.

And I felt it inside. People thought I was crazy. You've worked your whole life to get to this point. You have a contract with Vanity Fair and a contract with, you know, Diane Vogt. You're working, you know, why would you quit?

Because I believed in my heart that it was time to go. And I wanted young people who were really excited about shooting the next Britney Spears or the next Lindsay Lohan to do that. I was no longer excited about that idea. Advice I would give to young people, young artists starting out today, number 1 is turn off personal devices, your cell phones, your computers. You need to get away from me.

Getting away was always in nature. I would go there and figure out like my life's problems and my direction by sitting in the woods, you know, and praying and meditating and really trying to get answers and the answers would come, you know, you, they would come but it was in stillness. It was all alone. When you're a student and you're creative, a lot of times you're good at a lot of things. You might be good at musical.

You might have a love of photography or a love of visual arts. So finding that direction, but you have to choose what is that paramount love? What is that thing that's your most passionate about? And imagine yourself as would you want to be doing this in your life? Can you see yourself doing this?

And then you have to say, I'm a photographer or I'm an artist and not be embarrassed about it. Even if you don't have any photographs, you have to know that those photos are inside of you and that they will be good. Devote yourself. I mean, look at the body where Francesca Woodman left us, you know, and she died so young. But that girl was in, that's obsession, you know.

So you have people who are obsessed. So if you're going to dabble, you're not, It's not going to work, you know, unless you want it to be a hobby. It doesn't have to be your career, you know. And those are things you have to figure out. But the only way you can do that is not by asking people or asking your teachers or your parents or your friends or your Facebook friends.

You've got to go inside you. You know, you have to work. And that's what I had to do. And weddings taught me something. Travel photography taught me something.

They all led into what I'm doing today. Now I can shoot in the jungle in Hawaii and know when it's right and know how to make scenes work. And I can come to location scouting and know exactly which angles are going to be the best and for the light. And I understand that from the years I worked at Traveler. And the pressure, there's no more pressure than you can ever have working at a wedding.

So nothing fazes me anymore. The most important thing we have to study is art history. That never ends. What was once contemporary art in the 80s is now art history. So even going to galleries today, you're still, that's going to be art history 1 day soon.

And taking as much as you can, school never ends. I know The new has an allure because it is a reflection of our time right now. That's what's important about contemporary art, is that it reflects the time that we live in. That's what makes it so exciting and fascinating, that it is about our time. But our time is no longer just about the commodity art.

And Our time is no longer just about the art that's made in foundries, and that its value is only because it was made 22 million at auction. And I think that people, and there's young people who are really hungry for something else, and they're hungry again for poetry and for authenticity, and for work that's not being made just because it's going to fetch a really high price and make them an art star. You know, they're looking for work that actually speaks to them, that has something to say to them about the time, might shine a little light on the time, not just add to the confusion and the darkness that we live in, but actually give you a little bit of understanding of the time in another way, you

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MUSÉE talks with David LaChapelle [Part 1]