Lens & Pens // CJ Harvey

All photos courtesy of CJ Harvey

In a new series, Lens & Pens, New Commute meets the graphic artists, photographers, and filmmakers that help develop the visual elements and identities for the songwriters and bands we admire.

Today we meet photographer and tour manager CJ Harvey, whose superior work published in her new book LEFTY and annual calendar zines documents both the grandeur and prosaic moments of tour life with unfiltered delicacy.

It seems like you've had a very busy 2019. Tell us about the tours you've been on this year. Any notable shows or cities that stand out in your retrospective view of the year? 

It was certainly one of my busiest years yet. I calculated that I was traveling for about 200 days of 2019 which is a bit overwhelming to process, but I'm always grateful to share space on tours with so many artists I consider family. Anything's possible in good company. 

I started the year off with Sunflower Bean in the snowy midwest, then headed to Europe with Cherry Glazerr as the flowers began to bloom, worked Post Animal's first international tour in England and Europe, and filled in all the gaps with The Nude Party across all of North America.

The most notable shows were those with Post Animal in the UK / EU because not only was it the band's first time playing overseas, but it was my first time tour managing internationally. It was by far the most responsibility I've ever held on a tour, and everyone was buzzing with this incredibly infectious energy. Some other unforgettable nights took place in Atlanta with The Nude Party, Desert Daze with Post Animal, and Luxembourg, with Cherry Glazerr.

So along with photographing these tours, you're often the acting tour manager. Does the structure and organization required to be a good tour manager impact your approach when you pick up the camera?

You know what? I've never really thought about it like this, but there are definitely aspects of tour managing that impact my photography on the road. Being deeply intertwined with the logistics of each day's schedule can help with the timing of a shoot if I'm looking to set up a portrait session with the band because I know exactly when everyone will be in the same place. I'm constantly aware of what the accommodation will look like that night and how much wiggle room we'd have in the morning to put any photos together before we need to leave. Although, I think the most notable way that tour managing has affected my photography is by giving me so many other things to prioritize.

To be perfectly honest, photography is usually one of the last things on my mind when I'm tour managing, which creates an extremely low-pressure creative environment. When I first started touring as strictly a photographer, I felt this enormous stress to produce thought-provoking images daily. When I began tour managing, however, this need to constantly create vanished because I had so much else on my plate. As a result, I find myself taking fewer photos with far more sentimental value and avoiding shooting for the sake of shooting.

 Do you find that a busy year like 2019 helps or hinders your creative drive to work as a photographer? Is the constant travel and workload conducive to creating new and exciting work?  

It depends on the projects I'm concocting at any given moment. Sometimes I long to spread out on a massive table with my laptop and scanner, and spend weeks upon weeks scanning and printing new ideas. I'll want to stay inside for days by myself, in the same outfit, getting worked up over page layouts and removing dust from boxes of Polaroids. All of the tangible things I long to produce are nearly impossible to work on from a tour van.

With that being said, I find that the hustle of a jam-packed season often helps me remain present while I'm shooting, and piles up all of these precious moments that I'll then get to revisit once I have some time off. Oftentimes, I think I subconsciously try to forget what I've shot until I have the freedom to really focus on what I want to make out of that particular body of work.

How does the music of an artist you're working with impact or influence your approach to shooting? Do you notice a difference in your photography style depending on the company you're with while on tour?

There is less of an intentional shift in my approach to shooting bands with different sounds, and more of a compromise between the photographer's visual direction and the band's personal style. Meeting in the middle to create an image that feels both moving to me and representative of the band's energy is a beautiful collaboration. The more trust I share with my subject, the more likely that collaboration will accurately reflect everyone involved.

Do you find that your favorite photographs are captured with your film equipment or digital camera? Are you inclined to use one technology over another in a given situation? 

I would say nine times of of ten, I prefer my film photos. There's something deeply satisfying about trusting a roll of film with an intimate moment and having it turn out in a way that reminds you why you whipped out your camera in the first place. I usually shoot digitally when I'm being hired as a photographer to ensure a certain quality and consistency of images, and film when I'm shooting for personal projects.

Earlier this year, you released your first book, LEFTY. What was the greatest takeaway you have from the project? What makes it different than your previous zines?

LEFTY was by far the hardest I've ever worked on one single project. I poured more of my heart and creative vision into that book than anything else I've made before. I think the most noticeable difference was how much a series of work is capable of changing shape if you continue to spend time and energy on it. I spent about two years working on that same collection of photographs, and must have had a dozen different physical drafts before landing on the final layout. 

For sale currently in your webstore is your second annual calendar zine. Can you tell us about how the calendar comes together? What kind of consideration goes into selecting each month's photograph? Can we expect to see more print projects from you in 2020? 

Honestly, the calendar zine project was something I created primarily for myself as a way of highlighting some of my favorite images from the previous year in a small, tangible piece of art. It's proven to be a coherent method of showcasing work from any sort of shoot or tour, regardless of the actual consistency or narrative between the images. They're much more lighthearted and vibrant than the printed work I typically release, and are certainly the only somewhat practical thing I've made with my photos.

When I was a kid, I used to love making collages on my locker door out of old calendars and magazines, and it's been interesting to see what people do with theirs once the year is over. Some folks toss them out, as they've served their primary purpose. Some snip their favorite pages out and hang them up as prints. Some save them like a collectible series. I'm looking forward to keeping the project going on for as many years as possible so that the images I treasure the most have a place to go, even if I never print them for any sort of book or gallery.

Are you anticipating another busy year in 2020? Do you have plans for upcoming tours?

I sure hope so! I recently moved into my own house in the Catskills, and have been spending all of my free time renovating the space. It's a beautiful spot to enjoy some solitude, but I know I'll go stir crazy if I don't keep a packed schedule. My goal with the house is to create a cozy place to share with friends traveling through the Northeast for many years to come.