See Yourself in All That is New

Artists Statement

See yourself in all that is new, the title of a Jehovah’s Witness song, seemed to have perfect resonance with these images, regardless of my indifference towards its source.

In the past my images were created through compulsive and laborious set design and construction. I knew when I decided to travel I would have to embrace a new mode of image making, and photograph what I found. What I didn’t anticipate is how much I would find myself in what I trained my camera on. The images in this exhibition hearken back to the surreal constructions I have always made, which attests to the theory that when we are really honest in our work, any image making is ultimately a form of self-portrait.

This exhibition is a mix of large iconic images, often-unseen monuments, which resonated with me, as well as smaller more personal diptychs that tell a quieter more personal parallel narrative.

These images tease us with many layers of stories:

Historical stories, like the cave used as a refuge by an entire village, for years, during the Second Indochina War. The rickety staircase leading to a darkness we will never really be able to access.

My own stories, walking alone at daybreak, grateful to be alone doing what makes me feel like I belong in my skin.

Or as the title suggests, the countless stories the viewer brings with them and projects onto what they see. You may not see me or the stories behind these photographs, but if they have resonance maybe you can see something of yourself.