Landscapes Under the Influence

I have titled this recent series “Landscapes Under the Influence” to acknowledge with a bit of humor, the influence of Paul Strand on my photographic understanding. Introduced to the work of Paul Strand in the late 1970’s, I have learned much by studying his sculptural use of light and shadows in photographs of rural landscapes and abstractions of everyday objects.

When “under the influence” I look at a scene and see shapes, planes and textures that are manipulated by the light. I visualize how the scene will appear abstracted to a black and white image. With a digital SLR, as in Strand’s film/darkroom world, I make choices on both image capture and printing. I have chosen to print these images on a fine art matte paper in tones that reflect back to an earlier time in photography. By selecting a warmer cast for these photographs, I aim to suggest the perceived antiquity of the subject matter as well as earlier contact printing processes.