Date of Submission

Spring 2014

Academic Programs and Concentrations

Photography

Project Advisor 1

Stephen Shore

Abstract/Artist's Statement

When a photograph is looked at, there is an instantaneous and undetectable state of transition within the mind of the viewer. The context of the image as a physical object is replaced by an imagined reality, and it becomes removed from the world in which it exists. At the same time, a group of photographs, strung together through the act of viewing, collectively becomes a part of a singular and unique world. These types of images create mysteries that the viewer inserts within a known pocket of his or her own reminiscences; each photograph is placed into a dark corner of a lived memory, ready to be rid of dust and cobwebs.

In every way, photography is about communication. When I am making pictures, I can feel the assembling of the image before me. There is a sense of magnetism that draws me to it. In this series of images titled “Dark Praises”, I aim to communicate the deeply felt poignancy that I experienced when I was photographing. I seek to understand the mental puzzles that I face by forcing my viewer to see through an emotional filter, and I hope that this kind of poetic storytelling allows for each image to mimic the experience of reliving a memory. When does an image prompt its audience to derive meaning from it? Can a viewer relate an image of a subject unknown to them to an emotional occurrence from his or her own life? Is there a sentimental, psychological landscape that resonates with all human beings? Through the conjuring of light, tone, and choice of subject, the images become an elegy to this kind of experience, while each one quietly yet powerfully emits an aura of remembrance.

Open Access Agreement

On-Campus only

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

Download

This work is protected by a Creative Commons license. Any use not permitted under that license is prohibited.

Bard Off-campus Download

Bard College faculty, staff, and students can login from off-campus by clicking on the Off-campus Download button and entering their Bard username and password.

Share

COinS