Urban Iconography

I am fascinated with inert structures and static shadows that come to life by interacting with their environment. Its reflection in light makes a mechanical vent look like a neck of a giraffe and the shadow of a lamppost sheltering people walking by — an inanimate structure becomes animate. When I see scenes such as these then I know I need to explore further and I feel a visceral reaction and connection. I want to create what one sees and ignores every day and give these objects a place and elevate them to what I see as some kind of beauty. The works of Hilla and Bernd Becher and the disciples of the Düsseldorf School of Photography, such as Thomas Ruff and Andreas Gursky influence my creative style. Although this exhibit reflects their influence, my esthetic vocabulary differs in some important respects in that I tend to infuse my images with deep graphic texture. I chose to shoot these images in black and white, because I felt color would interrupt the relationship between the photograph and the viewer — in monochrome these images stay pure, simple and honest.