My work is mostly informed by my curiosity in the human condition specifically in regard to cognitive processes and perception. Through my current project Overcoming Prototypes: Breaking the Barrier of Functional Fixedness I seek to comment on the mind’s predisposition to categorize objects (experiences, people, ideas) into ridged constructs, that are largely dictated by social ideologies, surreptitiously assimilated, and independent of introspection. It is a common occurrence that when these ridged constructs are challenged the consequence is fervent discord. Emboldening a contentious push back against those who seek to affect transformative change within society. Fueling a cyclical process where majorities openly conspire to rationalize intolerance and the use of oppressive force, to prevent the minority from overcoming their lack of perceived station within a socially ordained determination of limited entitlement and usefulness. This body of work represents my personal journey to avoid the entrapment of such prototypical biases, which hold firm an unforgiving perceived reality. To peer through the haze of predetermined potential, and experience reality with an ever evolving worldview, guided by tolerance, acceptance and the realization of infinite possibilities.
My process is guided by the realization of unperceived usefulness, observing objects without regard to the limits of their purpose. Rather than employing traditional camera lenses, my photographs are achieved by modifying found objects and mounting them to the camera. The objects themselves present a willful interpretation of the subject, uncomplicated by the consideration of focus, depth of field, or direction. The work assumes the homogeneity of the manufactured camera lens as suggestive of ordered thought operating within the confines of restrictive social constructs. The utilization of found objects serves as a metaphor for the individual, unencumbered by the contrition of a mass consciousness. Celebrated rather than chastised for being a separate and unique entity. The variable acuity, translucence, and angles of refraction mimic the natural drive to maintain selfdom in a culture which requires relative uniformity. As such the work seeks to bring attention to the predilection of the individual to coalesce within a rigid paradigm. Advocating for a level of introspection significant for creative growth and expressive freedom, to let go and accommodate the unpredictable rather than strive to control it.
My intention to apply titles to each series serves as an admission that the mind is largely representational and that the drive to confine our realities is immutable. Grouping similar works together signifies my acceptance that objects will forever seek to be defined based on an interpretation informed by a combination of factors, including but not limited to ideology, outward appearance, application, and operational capacity. To this end in choosing titles, I draw inspiration from the grouping as a whole assigning a label that best represents the changes that the completed work has imbued in me personally.
