Figuring Oblivion Statement

The series Figuring Oblivion utilizes abstraction and layering and becomes manifest through a series of photograms and subsequent inkjet reproductions.  These works are engaged with visualizing abstract natural phenomena. Inspired by the theoretical approach of Laszlo Moholy-Nagy and the pragmatic approach of a conventional technician such as Eadweard Muybridge, these works engage with the history of photography as an extension of our sensual abilities. Titles such as Swarm and Metamorphosis hint at the natural processes that these works envision. These images are deceptive in their flatness and stillness as each one is the product of dozens of individual exposures layered upon the photo paper. My photograms are done “blind” in the darkroom, the nuances of the images only revealing themselves after development. This process mirrors the attempt to understand and objectively visualize natural phenomena and instead of a clear dissection of frenetic parts, what we create is a formally balanced, elegant whole – a beautiful mystery.