Drifting Lucidity

The fickle nature of our minds holds more power than we recognize and has the ability to alter our perception of others and ourselves and affect us in our decisions made and paths chosen in everyday life. This body of work explores those imperfections of the brain’s retention of detail and the distortions that occur in our recollection of events and experiences while conjuring the emotions tied to them. false memories, confusion of space, loss of detail and persistence of emotions are visually investigated through the photographs in order to portray the blurred line between fantasy, dreaming and misperception. The imagery calls attention to the subtle peculiar details that evoke the anxiety or confusion felt when experiencing the warping of our memories. These errors have the potential to emotionally shift and skew our perception of ourselves and everything around us. The overly dramatic shame felt from a clumsy mistake made as a child can manifest as the constant need for perfection and control. The persistence of one insult years ago may lead a lifetime of depression and failure. The photographs are made with a photography process I have discovered, for which I use the term photo fresco. The images are transferred into wet plaster, which result in the photo rippling and warping uncontrollably while drying. The undulations in the image mimic the distortions that occur in our memories. The fragility of the plaster imitates the delicate nature of the mind and, in turn, the perception of our past. The photo fresco references renaissance frescos that were once used to share stories of our past and educate people on the tales of the bible. The old frescos hold an energy that resonates to a viewer and brings those tales to life. Using this method, I am able to capture that energy within the image and project it to the viewer similarly. By imbuing the plaster with the photographic image, its static reference to a slice of time is even more solidified.