Explosions of colour in the life of a Nomadic vagabond

The thrill of the world has been captured by a veteran photographer whose work is on show at a Paphos gallery. ELENI PHILIPPOU meets him

 Colours, cultures and cameras. Traversing the globe to meet local communities, document the world’s monuments and witness breathtaking sights sounds like a dream. One US photographer with a restless spirit for travel has been living the nomadic life since the 90s.

His images have been published in well-known international travel magazines and this month islanders get a chance to see them up close and personal. Glen Allison’s current travel destination is this corner of the Mediterranean as he travels to Cyprus for the first time for a solo art exhibition now on in Paphos.

Glen’s first steps into the art world were as an architectural photographer having graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, with a Bachelor of Architecture degree. He spent 20 years dedicated to the craft when the travel bug hit and he almost immediately hit the road. Globetrotting to photograph the world turned out well for Glen as soon his travel shots were accepted by Getty Images as stock photos.

“In 1990,” he told Living, “I boldly sold all my possessions and spent the last of my savings to finance the beginnings of my global journey. My very first trip turned out to be a nine-year nonstop marathon photographing more than 100 countries. I was single and footloose, so I only returned to Los Angeles once a year for a week to visit my family and go to the dentist.”

Getty Image’s massive reach helped distribute Glen’s photos widely and during that decade his photos were published more than 100,000 times, including in the National Geographic and Conde Nast Traveler. “And that’s when I knew from deep within my soul,” he said, “that I had become a nomadic vagabond for life.”

And over the past three decades he has only stayed put a handful of times. Today he is still jumping from country to country, staying as long as his tourist visa allows. “I simply love this kind of lifestyle,” he added. “Everything I own can fit into about three suitcases, mostly filled with cameras and computer gear. I buy the appropriate clothes along the journey, then give them away when I shift climates. I have no goldfish, no car, no refrigerator, no TV.”

When the stock photo world crashed due to the proliferation of digital cameras and the massive over-saturation of imagery on the internet, Glen switched gears again. Fine art photography was his new passion yet his zest for travel remained and the photos he is now exhibiting at Cotton Contemporary Art gallery include a bit of both.

His Cyprus exhibition is on until May 21 under the title Continuum as it includes selections from numerous art series Glen has produced. Bold colours, painted faces abound in a show that includes images from Glen’s shoot in the Philippines last month titled unCAGEd.

“This exhibition most definitely embodies an explosion of colour emerging from often wild and exhilarating imagery,” Glen said.

“I feel incredibly excited and honoured to welcome Glen to both Paphos and Cyprus,” said owner of Cotton Contemporary Art Gallery, James Cotton, “and to be able to exhibit his work at my gallery. Besides his unbelievable talent in creating iconic imagery and the bold imagination of his art, there is character, humour, colour and sensuality in abundance that all art lovers will appreciate. His work has for decades been iconic.”

Glen’s photographs include interesting backstories, wild tales from his travels and he is eager to share them with visitors to the exhibition. A smokey Balinese cremation ceremony is one he remembers vividly and surely his three suitcases pack many more.

“May 14 will be my last full day in the gallery before I depart for Lithuania and then on to Iceland,” he said and just like that he will chase the next adventure. “My career highlight is the next thrill,” he added, “which usually pops into my life on a weekly basis.

“The thrill of immersing myself into new cultures and celebrating cultural differences lived by amazing people I meet across the globe inspires me. It has been a real eye-opener. Along the way, I have thoroughly shed all built-in prejudices. What a blast this journey is! It’s like being on a full-time, nonstop holiday. I chuckle when people ask, ‘Why don’t you get a real job?’” he admits.

“Each of us can experience the zest of life wherever we find ourselves at any moment,” he concluded. “One doesn’t just find thrill in distant lands. Local Cypriots might think this is only their backyard. But for me, I try to find excitement everywhere I go. And I’m convinced my mission on this great Earth is to spread this kind of enthusiasm. Let’s celebrate!”

Continuum

Solo art exhibition by fine art photographer Glen Allison. Until May 21. Cotton Contemporary Art Gallery, Paphos. 10am-6pm. www.cottonartgallery.com