In the summer of 2014, The Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens invited 10 artists to re-interpret river themed works from their collection for an exhibit entitled Reflections: Artful Perspectives on the St. Johns River. The show opens on February 21. I chose to create a series of 5 photographs, derivative work from Streaming South and some other earlier images, that address the confluence of man and nature. As I continue my explorations on the creek, I am developing heightened sensitivity to the presence of civilization, both permanent and temporal, in all forms (sight, sound, smell). I feel compelled to photograph this evidence in such a way to show how ubiquitous our presence is, rather than showing blatant disrespect and disregard, which are prevalent throughout our environment. I’m choosing to photograph “what is” is a way that does not make a particular commentary on the scene, but hoping to evoke awareness and a larger question in the viewer of “why is this so?” Intersections is planned to be a companion series to Streaming South and may be integrated into the body of work. While not purposefully designed to be the “dark side” of my journey, the work arises from emotional feelings of discontent and inquiry on the current state of our environment.
More information and the complete artist statement can be found on my artist website.