Experimental

2020-2022

I am a photojournalist by instinct. Truth, objectivity, and real stories matter a lot to me and I take pride in the responsibility of using a camera to document what I see. I also appreciate having control over my images, in terms of composition, light, and timing. Beyond the realm of photojournalism, however, I have always been drawn to pushing the limits of photographic techniques in order to create something more abstract and expressive. I have enjoyed experimenting with alternative printing techniques like cyanotypes, salt printing, and pinhole photography. These practices train me as an artist to treat my photographs less like finished products and more like tactile starting points for something unexpected. As the cliche goes, it teaches me to "trust the process".At the start of the Covid pandemic, I was introduced to the world of gel printing, or gelatin printmaking, a form of monoprinting technique that uses a soft, flexible gel plate to transfer a design or image onto a flat surface without the need for a heavy printing press. I have since become fascinated by what happens when you build on a photograph, a moment of reality, by transferring it onto gel plates and then mixing it with acrylics and hand-layered textures. In this new technique, I discovered a way to merge the materiality of photography with the raw, unpredictable magic of monoprinting.Combining photography with gel printing creates a fascinating tug-of-war between the objectivist and the artist in me. I control the camera to capture a moment of truth, but once that photo hits the gel plate, I relinquish most control over how my image turns out. Photo transfer gel printing is notoriously finicky, delicate, and almost seems to have a mind of its own with so many variables to consider. Paint smears, textures blend unpredictably, and subtle imperfections take over.
It forces me to embrace a balance I love: starting with complete photographic control, and then letting go just enough to let the process surprise me.