Meet Aidan Wilkinson | Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Aidan Wilkinson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Aidan, what makes you happy? Why?
I like seeing the world in parts. Every square foot, every object, every reflection has its own small story. History layered into things that usually get passed over. I pay attention to those details. Like people you meet in life, every part is a piece of the bigger picture.

And when I move, when I touch something or shift the light, I become one of those details too. Just a fraction. But one that belongs fully, woven into the shape of the whole.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
There’s a real pain in opening up. In art and in life, being known costs something. But being understood, even a little, gives it back with interest.

Words are plain, but they cut sharp. We layer them until they feel close to truth. We live through stories, and interpretation becomes experience. The difference disappears.

Vulnerability is recognized by those attuned to it. In photos, in faces, in the edge of story. It’s how I make sense of what I shoot – and how what I shoot sometimes speaks back.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’d take you back before 2020.

Before Cat Alley was evicted in silence – one day there, the next day gone. Before South Broadway lost its soul. Before Mutiny got pushed to Englewood. When antique stores still outnumbered boutiques.

Tom’s stayed open all night on Colfax. Burnham Yard was still breathing, a city murmuring at the margins, now leveled. I used to walk it.

Marks were left. Some mine. Most gone. Paved over, renamed, or priced out.

Time didn’t erase them, progress did.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’m grateful to Soul and especially to my mom, for being steady figures in my life. Their presence has never wavered. In photography and film, what you leave outside the frame can be as important as what you choose to show. Sometimes it’s the absence that gives the image its weight.

Instagram: @siraidanw