CIVIC EXPERIMENT - ARTIST STATEMENT

I began this project in 2014, an on-going, non-objective exploration of light, colors, forms and symbols. As with all of my work, I create these photographic abstractions in-camera, not with digital software or chemical processes. My experimentation has always evolved with the understanding that certain shapes and spaces that I deploy are linked with one another, and generate their own communication. At some point, however, a theme emerged, a notion about urban design and the cultural and economic landscapes of communities - perhaps in part, because I've been concerned with how our cities and suburbs are constructed, governed and experienced. While grounded in experimental organization, these particular images contain unpredictable forms - from crowded to reductive - which are a reflection of, and perhaps a forgotten glimpse of, the impact that city and suburban planning has on communities and society, at times without transparency or accountability.

I chose the title Civic Experiment for this collection because, despite professionals dedicated to the planning of our surroundings, our world is one of decay, change and transformation. All civic planning is essentially an experiment in time and the images are abstractions on topics both in front of and behind us. For example, Look Both Waze and Commuter are reflective of city infrastructure, particularly how transportation and other systems designed to provide essential services are in crises mode in cities around the world. Left Behind is recognition that while hundreds of abandoned subdivisions remain uninhabited, epidemic numbers of homeless live on urban sidewalks. And Step Across My Brown Grass and Aerial View are a visit into the ecological effects of our intervention with natural environments of marsh, farmland and desert.

Although I'm not interested in persuading social ideology, I'd like for the works to evoke emotion and contemplation of how planning impacts the future of all inhabitants in our fast-changing world.