Dan Eldon

"What is the difference between exploring and being lost?"

Dan Eldon was an English photo journalist who was stoned to death in 1993 at the young age of 22 by an angry mob in Somalia. When I started getting serious about visual arts, Dan Eldon was my first inspiration. I was introduced to his work in my third year of high school by my incredibly talented visual arts teacher. He used to tell me, 'Never fall in love with a dead man' as I'd obsessively leaf through Dan Eldon's pages during our lunch break. I ended up writing it on the side of my sketchbook as a reminder that art stems from obsession. My life motto, 'The Journey is the Destination' is from Dan Eldon. He kept a journal throughout his fascinating life with collages and writings about his travels and experiences. Through his raw pages you you step into the vagabond life of a beautiful women, reckless youth, and intriguing culture. Eldon combines my passions for travel, photography, adventure, and nature into bounded visual masterpieces.


Check out of Dan Eldon's work: http://www.daneldon.org/site/




Here are some pages from Eldon's Journal:

Here are two of my own Dan Eldon inspired pieces from high school:

Honestly I didn't really like these two pieces. I just ripped out some pictures from a National Geographic and used different media to create a collage but I find it superficial because I didn't really have an emotional connection with the statement I was trying to make. But I guess when you're pressed for a deadline and dealing with the wonderful trials and tribulations of the teenage years, shitting out masterpieces tends to be a struggle.