|Who is Joe Arpke?|

Joe Arpke has been trying to find inspiration similar to this reflection taken when he was 21. It was shot with his father’s 35mm film Minolta camera, while in a hot air balloon ride.

While trying to find his style, Joe was known for his taking Concert Photography, mainly for his friends and local bands they were in. He dabbled in abstract photography, street photography and occasional portraits.

Joe Arpke’s photography style solidified when he began delivering for a company whose truck was perfect for window reflections. In his latest series, A View From My Route, he captures reflections, only using a camera phone. The images are filtered with bold colors, giving a feeling of mania, confusion, anxiety, stress, and intense energy.

He could be described as the Van Gogh of Photography. He has struggled with similar issues of depression, anxiety, mania, substance abuse, and has been sober since 10/21/2012. Joe doesn’t believe that the artist has to be the “struggling artist.” He believes that Van Gogh would have fared much better were he alive today, thanks to modern medicine and science.