My practice begins with the creation of a relatively straight-forward photograph.
It can be argued that memory is more important than history. What I remember that seems relevant here is that I was first given an Instamatic camera when I was about 10. From the beginning I was fascinated by the way a camera could temporarily restructure my relationship with other people, mostly my family. I was able to use the camera to redirect attention off of myself and back toward others. I also remember being fascinated by constructed systems – political, economic, and social.
Since light is the medium that connects space (place) and time (memory), photography is particularly well suited to compress memory across time to a single point; and in so doing, highlight those parts of individual identity that are inexorably bound to community through collective memory. More generally my work reflects an alternative to presentism by revealing our individual and collective position in space and time; and by doing so, seeks to recover the value of community, with a particular emphasis on communities not of our own choosing.
