We the People
The photographic images in the series We the People were created in the darkroom through conventional silver gelatin printing and sepia toning. I photographed replicas of the United States Constitution and Declaration of Independence and sandwiched those negatives with negatives of emotionally charged figurative images.
My purpose is to stimulate critical thought, in the viewer, as to the meaning of Democracy in American and abroad.
Taking Liberty
Taking Liberty is a series of black and white photographic self-portraits inspired by a post 9/11 period of self-reflection. It is not a statement about the politics of the war or religion but an open-ended question addressing the issues of personal freedom and identity.
The burka is the most conservative form of veil worn by Muslim women. When worn by choice it is a symbol of religious devotion and personal honor. The burka, as a garment, limits it’s wearer’s ability to walk and move freely as well as her ability to see; the cloth mesh obscures focus and eliminates peripheral vision. The burka renders the wearer completely anonymous; it covers not only the body but the face thus concealing individual identity, facial expression and emotion. I have been photographing myself for the past 22 years, mostly in the nude, and have to ask myself whether my method of self-expression a choice or a compulsion. Am I revealing myself or hiding behind and image of myself as an object? Who am I beneath my veil of personal freedom?
The American flag is a symbol of independence and freedom for Americans. Post 9/11 the American flag has become a symbol of patriotism in support of the United States’ involvement in “the war against terrorism”. I chose to wrap myself in the American flag because I felt uncomfortably unpatriotic and un-independent. The veil of freedom is an illusion because as individual citizens or as a nation we are all dependent on each other. What is true liberty but a tolerance for differences amongst people, a recognition of our similarities and a sense of compassion for “the enemy”, especially when the enemy is a part of ourselves?
Cradle to Grave
I struggle to reconcile my own grief and despair about war, extinction and environmental degradation with my faith in the natural cycles of birth, death and regeneration. What emerge are photographic images that are stark and seductive, that affects the viewer on a visual and visceral level, a distillation of opposites, a poetry of paradox.
