Artist Statement

Subject and Concept

Though the subject of Remains seems straightforward—landscapes created between Alabama and Maryland as seen and photographed from a moving vehicle, it is a study in time travel, capturing the not quite what was or is, but what remains when the two time periods collide. These images are how I hold on to time. These places, real but altered by my perspective and thoughts, are of the fleeting moment. They are the in between of an inhale and expiration of breath. They allow me to just stop. 

Remains, this series, is my documentation of hope and loss from a year when I said goodbye to many I held dear. Looking out the car window as I traveled from assisted living facilities, hospitals, hospices, and veterinarians, this work represents the blur and the need to catch my breath but failing. And this is the refuge of choosing a random moment and place.

I created this series as a memorial to not only to those I have lost or am losing, but as a talisman to the world around me. It is a reminder to look for the unexpected and the unseen, and to find comfort in times beyond the routines and assumptions. Perhaps the images will reflect a small sense of peace as we go about living.

Materials and Medium

Remains is a series of photography-based serigraphs. I photographed each image using either my iPhone or my DSLR while I was on the road between Alabama and Maryland during a year of loss and wonder. I digitally edited the images, printed each on to acetate positives, and processed these onto silkscreens. First, I screen printed the sky and ground using four colors and a technique known as a split fountain, which creates a gradient-like effect. To each of these four colors, I added silver ink to generate a subtle shimmer reminiscent of that found in Daguerreotype photographs from the 19th century. By identifying each image's horizon line, depending on where I placed the ink, I could represent different times of day. For a few of the serigraphs, I added another screen to create subtle highlights to the overall composition, such as ground, water or aluminum buildings. Then I screened the photograph using black ink on top of the other layers to tie them together.

By creating purposeful halftones to create a grainy appearance to my photography, I can bring in an atmospheric quality to exaggerate the darkness and grain of Pictorialism-focused imagery. These are my tools for my time travel, how I capture the in between of then and tomorrow.

Take this journey with me.