Artist statement: I am interested in the tension between the photographic subject and object and how this may engender dialogue surrounding traditional structures of thought.
With 'Pine' the photographic paper is equal to the image and is treated accordingly. Much like the pine tree that eliminates all surrounding life but its own, the subject matter of this photograph has been reduced to an elemental trace. Then through a process of printing, physical interference and re-photography it is transformed into something neither completely image nor object. It hovers between these different states of being. By being so it undermines the binaries of original/copy, subject/object and by extension offers a possibility of thinking outside these limitations.
Chromogenic prints are printed on paper that has at least three emulsion layers containing invisible dyes and silver salts. Each emulsion layer is sensitive to a different primary colour of light (red, green or blue). The development process converts the hidden dyes to visible colour depending on the amount of light it was exposed to. This type of paper is commonly used to print from colour negatives or digital files to produce a full-colour image. It can also be used to print black-and-white images, giving softer grain and less contrast than gelatin silver prints. Commonly known as c-type prints, chromogenic processing was developed in the 1940s and widely used for colour printing, including for domestic snapshots. While recent years have seen this process accompanied by ink-jet and digital printing technologies, chromogenic printing still remains in use to this day.
