Once I noticed the first pair, I started seeing them everywhere.
These photographs were made in two small clusters: first in August 2022, in Montréal and New York; then again near the end of 2023, in Kingston, Reykjavík, and Québec City. I wasn’t consciously building a series at the time, simply noticing the same small joke recurring in different places: googly eyes on fire hydrants, walls, and bits of street furniture.
For a brief moment, the city came to life, and I smiled at the whimsy.
For me, this kind of looking is more than a visual joke. I live with PTSD-related hypervigilance, and walking with a camera helps channel that watchfulness into something creative and constructive. It encourages me to leave the house, to keep looking, and to experience small joys in places that can otherwise feel intimidating.
Shutter therapy, as I’ve heard it called. Or perhaps simply another way of seeing the world.
Scott Murphy ⊙ Photographer 