What are we waiting for?
You’ve wandered into a project called “the Art of Waiting”.
It is not, in its simplest form, a photographic project, but an exploratory work. It is an exploration of a concept.
The concept to be explored is waiting.
We are exploring what it is to wait.
Exploring is a wonderful experience for the explorer. But how will those exploring express the extent of their exploration? That’s where the photography finds its way into the project, but not immediately.
Each month, the explorers will be investigating, contemplating, searching what it is to wait. They will seek out waiting. They will ask themselves, “Who waits?”, “What do they wait for?”, “Where do we/they wait?”, “When do we wait?”, “Why are we waiting?”. And they will wait.
The explorers will share with you, with their words; with stories, poetry, and thoughts, what they discover.
And you will want to see what they have captured on film.
And you too will wait.
None of the images captured by these explorers will be developed until 2011.
Learn to wait with us.
the Art of Waiting 
Holy $#!% Jeff I got chills reading that! I’m stoked!
Cool! I’ve just received the invitation thru snail mail. You won’t believe this but I was actually waiting (not very patiently) for a parcel to arrive. It’s a replacement hard disk from Seagate. Then your mail came in and I saw ‘the art of waiting’ written on it and I burst into laughter. I thought God sent me a letter asking me to wait patiently for my parcel. Hahaha. I’ll be sending you the info real soon. Thanks.
I have to tell you Jeff that the day I got my invite through snail mail I had just spent 45 minutes at a dead stop at a traffic accident in the sleet. There really was no where else to go and no other good way to get where I was going so I waited. My kids were impatient and thought we should find another route but as I informed them, sometimes it’s just not possible. I, too, was laughing when I got your invite!! How pertinent this project will be to my real life!!
I was just thinking at your project and letter this morning and asked myself when I’ll receive it… so I went to the post office and the only letter in my postbox was yours! :))) And I love this concept. Let’s wait together for the whole year 2010!! :)))
Really, 2011?? C’mon!!
hey dirk!
i’ve “mailed” you back my reply. hopefully you’ll get it in full – haha.
kudos to you man for “creating” this project.
cheers!
panelomo
i mean Jeff, not Dirk. 🙂
I just got my invite!! I’ve already filled out the reply, enveloped it and now I’m “waiting” to get to the post office at lunch.
I am so excited to be part of something like this, I think it’s a wonderful idea and you’re creating something really beautiful.
Plus patience is the one thing my extremely old-fashioned boyfriend (and I mean, this guy doesn’t have a mobile phone. No. Cell. Phone.) is always telling me I need to work on. He thinks the world’s gone mad because no one remembers how to wait for anything, so no one appreciates anything. Waiting truly is an art.
I think this is going to be a great learning experience for me. Learning about photography, learning about myself, and learning about the excitement of collaborating on a project I think is incredible.
I may or may not have mentioned this website in my new blog…and I may or may not be doing it again soon, along with some brainstorming about my ideas for the upcoming year-long event =)
Just saying…
just wrote the answers for the reply and will send it back to you tomorrow! 🙂
Answers on their way!
Hey Jeff, I can now sit and relax knowing that I finally got out of the house to post your reply, while waiting for the lethal ice to clear so I can get out I’ve also been waiting for a parcel from Blurb one month later it still hasn’t turned up, now I wonder do I carry on being patient into a new year! : ))
I’ve just received the invitation, thank you, I will be sending you the information soon.
You’ve not receive my reply? Gosh. What happened? 😦 I sent it out the next day after it arrived.
@kylewis & @Mijonju I can hardly wait to get your replies 😉
@ndroo We didn’t receive mail for the last three days because of the Christmas holiday – maybe today will be the day!
So is this a film project or…?
yes, it’s a film project, but also more than that…you may want to read through some of the posts under “Wait Here” at the top of the page. 🙂
Wow! Great concept. Complete opposite of the instant gratification of the ‘daily photo idea’. As a film user I am happy to wait with you!
Do let me know if the mail ain’t there by the end of the month. Maybe the postman ate it. Duh. I’ve start the shooting and waiting but guess you’ll have a longer wait for my mail. Haha.
Hi Jeff, hallo all,
happy new year! Agfa Pocket loaded with fresh 110 film, waiting to expose 24 bits of celluloid.
Love this idea!! 😀
I love the idea of being part of such a great project. I can’t wait 🙂 to see the results…
Although i’m not a waiter, i’m a watcher.
I’ll continue to watch, and wait, with you all.
With curiosity and anticipation.
i think its a great idea – the art of waiting – i wait and wait but the thing im waiting for is to me unknown
i am 15 years of age and i am unsure of what i am waiting for, i am waiting for the sake of waiting but i am unsure of what it is i am waiting for . if that makes any sense.
i can sit and wait and i like to wait for it give me time to think
‘what am i waiting for?’
and i wait and i wait and my mind fills up with all sort of clever little thing yet
when i am ask what are you waiting for i have no answer, well i guess im waiting to have
an anwser on why i am waiting 🙂
Thank you Jeff, for allowing me to do a local version of this awesome project!
It’s here… http://whilstwewait.tk 🙂
We’ll be waiting with you.
CHEERS!
This is fascinating. I think waiting is one of the least understood activities of the age in which we live. It is something we all partake in, whether voluntarily or not, whether we understand it or not. It has been said that all good things come to those who wait, yet I have waited at times for a very poor showing for my patience.
Yet, in spite of that, I think waiting is important to us, because if we are willing to wait, we are willing to hope for something better. I look forward to seeing more of this project and the direction it will take.