JONATHAN CHERRY: What did you have for breakfast this morning?

JOHN MANN: Things are pretty simple around here. I had cereal with honey and banana.

JC: Are there any emerging photographers inspiring your practice at the moment?

JM: Yes, definitely. Myra Greene, Aaron Rothman, Ian van Coller, Sonja Thomsen, and all of the folks in the Piece of Cake collective (though some have moved past the emerging status now). We don’t all work the same, but I find their work and work ethic particularly inspirational.

JC: Give us some background information to Thinner Air and how the idea developed?

JM: Thinner Air developed after looking at the maps I had been using in the previous project (Folded in Place), and considering the fact that maps are drawings with an aerial viewpoint. I liked the idea that my eye could wander over a mapped space as if flying above it. The spark for Thinner Air came about by following odd instincts, such as a sudden desire to build a small model plane, without the thought that it could lead anywhere. Those moments tend to lead somewhere for me. 

JC: How did you find the editing process for Thinner Air?

JM: In essence, it is a photographic sequence. But there are spatial shifts, and this was most exciting to play with. Much like editing a film, I wanted to take the viewer somewhere by forcing juxtapositions that could only happen in a sequential format. It needed to remain fairly quiet, and the book format helped to keep it this way.

JC: I really enjoy the series Folded in Place – what’s it all about?

JM: For me, the project was about visiting places photographically. How could I take a photograph of a country to which I have never been? It was an act of play, and experimentation with color. It also became a method of exploring how little information a photograph needed to provide.

JC: What does photography mean to you?

JM: It is a chance to describe the places that my mind wanders to. It is a chance to describe a sense of awe in visual terms.

JC: Any exciting plans on the horizon for you photographically?

JM: Right now, having a new book out is pretty exciting. But I feel fortunate to have my work in a number of shows this fall, and I am working on the beginnings of the next photographic project, as well as a short video piece.

JC: Any words of wisdom to recent photography graduates?

JM: I am still finding my own wisdom, but I would have to say that it has been quite beneficial to me to follow ideas that at first have no relevance. It is quite common for me to work on projects for several years before I figure out if I can use them in some way. To be able to follow an idea without knowing an outcome is one of the real treats of photography for me.  

Secondly, I live some distance from a large art community. Living this far away has given me the space to make my work, and the ability to afford making work.   Negotiating the art world from a distance is a different process perhaps, but it can be done. I am most thankful to my artist friends around the country who make the world seem a bit smaller.