I am constantly pushing the boundaries of photography. I’m looking for the edges of what a photograph can be. Expressions is a series of photographs masquerading as something else entirely.
The dance.
I met my exquisite wife in a ballet class, and humility followed naturally. Where she earned her degree in the art – choreographing masterful work and performing it brilliantly -, I struggled to keep my head above water. Still, my love for the practice endured. This photographic series, Expressions, begins as a dance, in perhaps the most Martha-Graham-esque definition of the term. It’s pure kinetic energy. Movement. Uninhibited.
The brush stroke.
I’m perennially drawn to the abstract expressionist movement. The gestural painters, those who were able to project raw emotion through seemingly random brush strokes. I’ve found through Expressions that in order to convey turbulence or energy or whimsy, the most authentic way I could express it was to let those feelings dictate my motion. While creating these works, the end result wasn’t apparent until hours after the fact; all I had to go on was how the movement felt.
The capture.
This series is an exercise in letting go. In my work as a commercial photographer, precision is key; planning is critical. Expressions is necessarily fluid and forces me out of my analytical mind, bridging left brain and right. A camera as my canvas paired with the frenetic movement that creates these pieces is in stark contrast to the structured constraints I am used to working in. It’s freedom. It’s expression.
The collection.
Expressions is fast becoming a favorite of interior designers, from my amazing friends in Wichita to the powerhouse firm, Swatchroom, in Washington, D.C., who recently acquired a custom series for their client 1350Eye, just three blocks from the White House…where I’m sure finding calm from turbulence is much needed.
Open-edition and custom prints available.