I recently sent my dad a set of interview questions about our collaboration on SNAPSHOTS. I wanted to capture not just the creative process behind the project, but also the family stories woven into the imagery. I’m excited to share his responses with you below. If viewing on your phone, please scroll down for accompanying images. 

 

KAT: As you know, I drew part of the Miss Meatface persona from your grandmother (my great-grandmother), Rubie. The cat’s-eye mask she wore in the 1973 photograph you took of her inspired me to incorporate cat’s-eye masks into Miss Meatface. Even though Rubie passed away before I was born, I’ve always felt a strong connection to her and I think she would’ve fit perfectly into one of our Miss Meatface shoots. I can’t help but wonder, what do you think she would have thought of Miss Meatface? Do you feel there’s a spiritual connection — or shared character traits — between her and Miss Meatface? Or perhaps with other members of our family, past or present?

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RICHARD: Rubie believed she had prophetic dreams. She told me one of them. In it, I was driving my VW bus along the highway and there were sheep. She got that one right! A herd of sheep crossed in front of my bus as I was driving the Pacific coast highway. She said I was her favorite grandkid. My mother didn’t like it when she’d say it out loud, though.

 

I used to take her for rides in my ‘55 MG to the Sunrise Cemetery so she could visit departed family members. It’s the same cemetery where you and I did the photo shoot for the book. It wasn’t easy getting her in and out of the MG, it being so low to the ground. She said she loved riding in it, though, because people looked at her when we drove by. She always wore large sunglasses, a scarf, and a short 1950s wool coat with big round buttons. She liked posing for the camera. I’m sure you two would have gotten along.

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KAT: We used the small-format Pentax Auto 110 Super film camera for these shoots—what do you love (or perhaps love to hate) about shooting in the 110 film format, and how do you feel it shaped the look of SNAPSHOTS?​

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RICHARD: I had a hard time focusing through the tiny viewfinder because of my bad eyesight. It wouldn’t be my top pick as a camera format, but I know the look you’re going for. A 16mm negative isn’t going to give a lot of definition, but it does give a lot of grain and a softer look. So, that would make it a top pick for a Miss Meatface snapshot camera. My snapshot cameras were earlier and simpler. My Falconflex and Falcon Minicam Bakelite plastic cameras took 127 film. The soft effect came from the plastic lens they used, rather than the size of the negative. I have the polar opposite of your 110 Pentax SLR: the monster Pentax 67 SLR. When the shutter goes off you better be wearing a mouth guard to protect your teeth.

 

KAT: What surprised you most about our collaboration—did you ever imagine that we’d do something like this? 

 

RICHARD: Nope, I did not. But it seemed like a natural progression while we were shooting it. We knew all the same locations, and knew what kind of shot we’d get from it. Everything worked out.

 

KAT: Do you have a favorite SNAPSHOTS shoot that stands out? If so, could you explain why it’s a favorite? 

 

RICHARD: I’m partial to the shots among the WWII bomb shelters on Mare Island. They look like a mysterious artifact, especially when contrasted with the Southern style commandant's mansion in the background. People have told me they get a “southern town” feel in old Vallejo. And since Vallejo was one of the first west coast cities to order a wartime blackout due to fears of a Japanese attack after Pearl Harbor it’s a bit of forgotten history.

 

KAT: I envision the SNAPSHOTS project being turned into a full scale gallery exhibition and possibly even an ongoing series of photo books - what do you see for the project's future?

 

RICHARD: I think there’s a lot more that could be shot because there is more history to be mined. It’s just a matter of how often we can get together as time marches on.

 

KAT: Thinking about future Miss Meatface shoot collaborations, are there any locations at the top of your list for the next one?

 

RICHARD: There are plenty of memorable locations we’ve been to over the years...the Russian River and the redwoods being one. The abandoned Cliff House in San Francisco. The Giant Camera above Ocean Beach would be a great location, but I think that closed too, at about the same time as the Cliff House. West Marin County is another. Vallejo also has an infamous past. It was the town where the Zodiac Killer got his start. There are locations about that, too.

 

Many of our sites are gone, but some still survive and are waiting to be scouted throughout the SF Bay Area.

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KAT: What do you hope people feel or take away from the SNAPSHOTS project?

 

RICHARD: That they will view their own family albums with a deeper appreciation.

 

KAT: Do you see photography as a kind of family inheritance for us, something that carries forward through generations? 

 

RICHARD: I only know that history as far back as your great granddad’s sister, Louise. She was a photographer who opened a portrait studio in downtown Napa back in the teens and 20s, 100 years ago. She trained her son, Loy, in darkroom processes, but more as a model in front of the camera. Loy became super aware of the camera. In any photo I ever saw of him, taken by anyone, he posed like it was a movie still.

 

I was in high school when Loy died. I got his darkroom equipment and set it up in my bedroom. Put blankets over the windows and a towel under the door. It wasn’t much, just a small enlarger and some trays and vials and such. I taught myself photography with the enlarger and trays on the floor. Not sure what I used for a camera. I think I borrowed one.

 

I’ve been away from photography for a while now, having sold all of my darkroom equipment and my large format cameras. But after our Meatface shoot this year, I brought out my Contax 139 Quartz camera and started shooting around town with that. I might post some of the results on Instagram. I just set up an account there. I have tons of negatives from years and years in sealed ring binders on a shelf. All sorts of things.

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Head to the SNAPSHOTS Kickstarter page to back the project.​ Follow Kat and Richard on Instagram at @missmeatface and @vtownproject.  Check out Richard's website for more on his Frisco Detective book series.

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