Last Spark

Comment

Comment by Resident Curator on May 3, 2021 at 11:23am

Curator’s Comments:  

Welcome to the site!  The smoky richness threaded throughout your photographs reveals a signature aesthetic, and interest in the darkness revealed in nature. Last Spark captures this conceptual approach beautifully, and layers mystery into a somewhat mundane subject. The depth of field in the piece blurs the horizon, and leaves the ignited fire at the viewers’ feet.  The orange glow of the embers is repeated more softly in the peripheral warm leaves, allowing for a flow of visual movement through color, away from the strong focal element.  Affliction takes this visual drama up considerably with the mysterious figure shrouded in crimson silk.  Like Last Spark, the emphasis on saturated color in the center of the composition is counterbalanced by lushly articulated dark surrounding elements. There’s an archetypal primacy to the figure- rendered a body more than persona by lack of specifying features.  For me, his naked blindness in a densely wooded landscape evokes a foreboding Eden.  The choice to position him below center also supports the narrative of a fall, or position of humans as insignificant in contrast to the towering trees.  I enjoy these works without knowing if there is in fact content beyond formal concerns. I’m happy to have discovered them on the site, and look forward to seeing more of your practice.