Immortal Chromatic
Flowers have many functions in our natural environment. They act as protection for seeds and allow for self-propagation by attracting pollinators with their color and scent. Some flowers have infrared color markings that can only be seen by bees or birds. Among humans, flowers are ritual symbols of purity, consolation, and hope. My deeply personal relationship with flowers began when a family member suffered a potentially fatal and traumatic brain injury in the Spring of 2016. Aside from the flowers that were sent to their hospital room, I took breaks from being at their side and went outdoors to a flower bed in front of the hospital. It was here that I soaked in their vibrant color. Trauma has a way of sharpening our awareness and cracking open our perception. Staring into these flowers, it was as if I were staring directly into the source of all life. It filled me up and gave me a sense of hope. For more info on the works that came from this time please see the following projects: Flowers for M, Freshly Shredded Flowers.
My most recent work titled Immortal Chromatic carries on many of my previous themes and concerns in using flora within instant film (aka Polaroid and Fuji’s version– Instax). I begin by digitally photographing a flower arrangement that contains a species which holds its color even after dying or being cut off from it’s earthly sustenance. I digitally slice up this initial capture into a grid and then translate them into physical instant film modules. Each instant film module or tile is cut and or burned as it develops. I also use the sun and a magnifying glass to burn the tiles so the intensity of the light at the time of making is reflected in the burns across the tiles. I use the light source which allows images to be made to instead disrupt and scar the photo-object. Much like a wound transforms in to the sculptural scar, this is a nod to the inherent creation that arises out of a destructive event. While these processes violently disrupt the image, they also create new “blooms.” Returning to the idea of compression of multiple moments into singular, physical works, I see the spontaneous cuts I make as alternate timelines for the internal image. The image can have a multitude of directions depending on how I cut it. Most of the cuts I make are unplanned so there is also a record of my spontaneous choices made in the moment. This speaks to how a traumatic event can alter who we become in unpredictable ways. We also make choices in terms of how we react to challenging events, which, in turn, creates a specific timeline. Cutting the one-of-a-kind instant film modules also feels pleasantly irreverent and transgressive! The final works are mosaics that contain a dance between the orderly capture of a still life and spontaneous destruction.
My goal with these works is to speak to the inherent creation that arises out of disruption, fuse disparate moments together, and to create previously unexplored photographic objects. These objects are records of my personal process and control over my own healing.
