Ordinary–the dictionary definition is: with no special or distinguishing features; normal; uninteresting; commonplace. As photographers we often spend our lives seeking to make images that are extraordinary. Either in or out of the studio we are trying to make a picture that captures the more than ordinary. As a landscape photographer, I’ve traveled to places […]
I began thinking about issues of materiality last year when preparing for the final Glacial Narratives exhibition. It was vital to the foundation of the artworks that I was creating to draw inspiration not only from the imagery of Greenland and the Arctic ice, but also from the materiality of the lived experience of the
A sense of place is an important aspect of photography for me. It was the driving force behind my work in the high Arctic — what does it mean to reside in a place of extremes? Because there is a big difference between what you experience through visiting a location, and how you learn it
We are now in August. This is the sixth month since I returned to US. What is it like? Strange. Both my country of origin and myself have changed in the years I’ve been on Svalbard. I don’t feel like I’m part of this culture, and there are many parts of what this culture has
A few days ago the date changed from 2024 to 2025. All my responsibilities are done here. There are moments when I feel I should just go, and yet months ago I intentionally gave myself this extra space. We live in an age when it’s expected that it will be just one damn thing after
In a Minute There is Time Read More »
One of the many things I love about cyanotypes is their flexibility. I was talking about how to make cyanotypes with a friend and one of the questions she asked was, “Can you make cyanotypes from color film negatives?” I had no answer. Before she went off to work in Antarctica for a few months
Cyanotypes + Color Film Negatives Read More »
Today I dropped off my last artist at the airport. Next Saturday, 30 November, my contract as director of the Spitsbergen Artists Center and Residency will end. I didn’t come to Svalbard intending to run artists studios, a craft center, exhibition spaces, and an artists residency. That was not the plan. This came from a
We are well into the year and I think it is time to say that this will be my last year on Svalbard. As the great American philosopher, Kenny Rogers, once said, “You have to know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ’em, and know when to walk away.” It is my time
In the years that I have lived on Svalbard I have often described the passage of the year as being more like one long day than a year with seasons. One with weeks of sunrise and sunset, and months of night and day. Of course this is not truly accurate either. In fact, I’m not
A Farewell to Darkness Read More »
It sometimes seems that photos of abandoned places litter the internet, or at least FB. Abandoned hotels, factories, homes. Ghost towns, theaters, mining camps. If humans lived there, then left, we want to photograph it. We are more interested in these momento mori than we were in their time as an actively in-use building. I
The Lure of Abandoned Places Read More »