Nothing and Everything

I photograph...

2008-08-04T09:32:00.000-07:00

...because it is summer time and it is a joy to have the camera in my hands.

I didn't photograph...

2008-05-07T19:56:00.000-07:00

...in this case, but I did make the diptychs. These images are some of my favorites... but I used most of the landscapes I received from my collaborators....

A vast and endless terrain of networks, I was curious about what collaboration with the limitless Internet would entail. I implored "digital individuals" to upload what they thought were examples of a good photograph and invite all of their contacts to do the same. I hoped to expand the scope of my search in order to achieve a broad collection of images from artists and non-artists alike. All they knew was what they had, their opinion on a quality photograph.

The majority of images submitted were landscape oriented, revealing that my "Internet photographers "viewed their most exemplary images as describing their surroundings. As I viewed the images all together, ties were formed between pictures that would never be formed previously, since most of the photographers are essentially impersonal strangers to one another. Yet throughout all the complexity of navigating the mass of images submitted and the relationships they formed, the images themselves started to become ironically symbolic of my collaboration:

Nature is what we--
Yet have no art to--
So impotent Our Wisdom--
To her Simplicity
--Emily Dickenson

Kelsey Venderventer/Jennifer Gerberding

Zachary Perez/Eleanor Clemmons

Danielle Peterson

Hannah Britton/Marianne Jaeger

Jennifer Gerberding/Amanda Rountree

Carissa Whisenhunt/Zachary Perez

Jane Pittluck/Adam Espinoza

Emily Marston/Molly Perry

Danielle Peterson/Jennifer Gerberding

Danielle Peterson/Carissa Whisenhunt

I photograph...

2008-04-27T13:43:00.000-07:00

...because I want to remember time spent with people as full of life and movement.

I photograph...

2008-04-13T14:50:00.000-07:00

...because something beautiful happens when you mix the old with the new, whether that is a modern girl in old clothing, or antiquities in a modern world.

I photograph...

2008-03-26T12:22:00.000-07:00

...because there is:

No time for smelling the sun.
Too quick running through the trees.
To notice the breeze. Then:
Stop.
Breath.
Listen.
It only takes one second.
Beauty.

And it is also a continuation of this.

I photograph...

2008-03-24T21:40:00.001-07:00

...because I wanted to see and remember more from the Art Symposium than just intriguing and excellent lectures...

I photograph...

2008-03-24T21:00:00.000-07:00

...to remember memorable and joyous time spent with wonderful friends...

I photograph...

2008-03-21T15:31:00.000-07:00

...because some of the people, vegetables, animals and minerals that live in my house are intriguing to look at and remember.

I photograph...

2008-03-20T13:27:00.000-07:00

...because of this reason.

I photograph...

2008-03-20T13:19:00.000-07:00

...because I have a strange sense of humor and a very active imagination. And yes, a pile of laundry can be a Jurassic volcano if it wants to be.

I photograph...

2008-03-20T13:07:00.000-07:00

...to somehow remember glimpses of my childhood in the now lonely space only occupied my my reclusive Grandma and 50 years of accumulated "stuff". These images came out of my knowledge that this home used to be filled with the vigorous activities of my Grandma's crafting, my Grandpa's woodworking and my sister and I running around like crazy headless chickens. I spent so many hours coloring and drawing, playing dress up, building with the blocks and toys my Grandpa would hand-make or clogging up imaginary freeways with my Dad's old cars. As I transversed the house, not only could I see whispers of my own childhood, but evidence of my Dad's presence in his parent's house from boxes of old photo paper to his old darkroom in the garage marked with a distinctive "fish eye" image of his Dad.

I photograph...

2008-03-20T11:24:00.001-07:00

...to document how my head can sometimes feel when I am in chapel and the music is really loud...but then afterwards there is peace.

I photograph...

2008-03-20T11:04:00.001-07:00

...because I love to explore and see different places from unfamiliar perspectives. These images are all from a variety of locations with no common theme other than being taken with the eye of someone looking for a unique view on several frequently occupied places.

I photograph...

2008-03-12T17:30:00.000-07:00

...to remember everything that was in my room, Saturday March 8 and Monday, March 10, 2008.

I photograph...

2008-03-12T16:33:00.000-07:00

...because it was Tuesday, one of the busiest days of my week, and I often go right through the whole day without remembering much of anything. This time, I wanted to deliberately document almost every move that I make to remind myself to slow down and really look and my surroundings instead of letting them just pass me by...

I photograph...

2008-03-08T20:03:00.001-08:00

...because everyday I drive by the houses in my neighborhood without actually looking at them and all of the various nooks and hidden faces that I have never stopped to notice before.

I photograph...

2008-03-08T19:52:00.000-08:00

because the spaces and places around and in my dwelling (where I spend a great deal of time) become more interesting the more I look. I am documenting my house, the place where I have spent so many years in order to unite what I remember from the past, to what actually exists in the present.

I photograph...

2008-03-08T19:32:00.002-08:00

because it is Friday and that means spending time with two of my little sisters, Amanda and Jane...

I photograph...

2008-03-08T19:32:00.001-08:00

...because the light that was falling in my backyard illuminating all matter of plant life and backyard objects was also illuminating and bringing life to my abstract/rice paper collage paintings as I was working on them. Together, these two vastly different subjects make quite a striking pair, often complimenting each other in ways we never would have been able to see before.

I photograph...

2008-03-08T19:31:00.002-08:00

... because it is exciting to go around a room that you think you know, in your own house, and see it from new perspective.

I photograph...

2008-03-08T19:31:00.001-08:00

... because the light that comes through my window in the morning is amazing and I wanted to capture it refracting through some amazing leaves. As I began to photograph, I began to also see the relationships of the different objects in my room, and how they were interacting with the light. The texture in the leaves began to be reflective of the texture on my paintings piling up around my floor. My ever-watchful friend was right by my side, watching my every move and as I looked up from the leaves, I saw myself in her eye.

I photograph...

2008-03-08T19:27:00.000-08:00

...because space and spaces are where we spend our physical life and most of us don't really stop, look and meditate on the spaces that surround us and how they influence who we are.

I photograph...

2008-03-08T19:22:00.000-08:00

...because light and lights are intriguing and captivating.