Redundant Behavior

Comment

Comment by Resident Curator on October 31, 2013 at 5:10pm

Curator’s Comment:

 

Thank you for inviting me to comment on your work, and offering insight into what you hope the viewer experiences in your photographs.  Pathway to My Dreams is in fact a hypnotically saturated and fantastical work- I never would have presumed this was a straight shot, as color is so often and easily enhanced with Photoshop.  The extreme depth of field focus on the foreground blurs the background into an indistinguishable field of dappled violet, green and black.  I like the way the lighted lily pads lead from the center of the composition, and move up to the middle left.  They create the sensation of stepping stones, and by association imbue the flowers with a figurative presence.  The dual water lilies are interestingly placed in the bottom of the picture plane, as they could read as a near reflection of the other despite the incredible contrasting hues.  But I admit I think Redundant Behavior is a much stronger image- it captures the sensual form of a familiar animal in way that’s both bold and subtly shadowed.  I also appreciate the spatial orientation is such that the break in the cleaved plumage comes in from the left side of the piece; as it points to the right, the repeated arching patterns of the orange feathers bring the eye to the periphery of the works opposite edges.  This keeps the piece fluid, instead of forming a centralized and static focal point.  You mention a ‘special effect’ in the caption of the photograph.  But I don’t find the technical manipulation of the subject evident in the viewing.  For me, this is a positive aspect. Technique moves beyond the medium, and creates an evocative, sensory image.