Stark Reflections on Writing and Publishing

Seeing The Beauty with Artist, Photographer, Graphic Designer, and Music Aficionado Stephan Gaydos

·49 min·4 clips

Steve Gaydos describes how his father's death inspired a photography project touring industrial ports on the Great Lakes.

The episode begins with host Mark Leslie Lefebvre introducing the interview with his best friend Steve Gaydos, recorded during a road trip to New Brunswick for a writer's conference. Mark explains they drove from Ottawa through Quebec and New Brunswick, rediscovering the province's beauty. In the interview, Steve talks about his early memories of music, including listening to a transistor radio as a child and maintaining a vinyl collection. He discusses the quality differences in vinyl records over time and his preference for used record stores. Steve shares stories about creating handmade t-shirts for Mark in their youth, highlighting the artisan quality. The conversation shifts to Steve's photography project for the School of the Photographic Arts Ottawa, where he toured Great Lakes industrial ports as a tribute to his father, who worked for Inco. Steve reveals how his father's death influenced this project and another piece involving ice formations on the Ottawa River. He reflects on finding beauty in change and unconventional subjects, hoping it inspires others. Mark asks Steve what advice he would give his younger self, and Steve emphasizes the importance of knowing there is a bigger world beyond his small hometown. The episode concludes with Steve mentioning he does not have an active website but suggests his art can be seen in things that intrigue him.

As heard by us

A thoughtful episode on how well-made design can keep gathering meaning long after it first appears.

The episode centers on a sturdy idea about creative work: a carefully made object can hold its meaning even after its first purpose has passed.

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Why you'd press play

You want to know why a handmade logo and an old Rush shirt can stay alive long after the day they were made.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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