Surface Tension
For 150 years film was the vehicle for our images. We carefully cleaned off the dust and avoid fingerprints and scratches. We wanted the surface of our negatives to be silent so our images could speak clearly but in this project 100 rolls of processed color negative film from an abandoned photographic project gets crushed, folded, and gouged to be repurposed as sculptural objects.
I fold, crumple and slice the film, often randomly, to emphasize its tactile elements. I make these fractures interrupt the frames of the images trapped in the film’s emulsion like a fly in amber. I’m making the old project participate in it’s own destruction and rebirth this time as an image and an object. I’m using a flatbed scanner to photograph it. The film’s surface reflects the illuminating digital eye of the scanner back into itself, conveying the experience of being seen. I’m folding some of the prints to emphasize the physicality of the folded negatives.
An image captured on film, destined never to be seen and made useless for traditional printing, has had it’s purpose subverted. However, being freed from photographic concerns, it’s released from intentions, expectations and the shackles of memory.
