April 16 - May 7, 2022
From 500X Gallery:
“The title ‘Flatland’ is a nod to the 1884 book by Edwin A. Abbott. It also references the nature of the photographic process which takes a three-dimensional reality and produces a two- dimensional representation, a ‘flatland’ so to speak. The geometric shapes used throughout the series can be seen as a reference to the inhabitants in ‘Flatland’ and their many forms while the incorporation of points and more representational (camera made) images reference the multiple dimensions visited throughout the book. The interplay of dimensions visited by A. Square in Abbotts ‘Flatland’ and the compressing of dimensions inherent in the photographic process felt like one maybe could have inspired the other, as the invention of photography had taken place only some 40 years before ‘Flatland’ was written.
The text piece that serves as the starting point of the series is constructed of five quotes from ‘Helgoland’ by Carlo Rovelli, and sets the contemplative tone the viewer should have with the works moving forward, as the artist was ruminating on the same quotes while producing the pieces. The first two quotes are in reference to a Buddhist text by Nāgārjuna which touch on the connectedness of all things, the third and fourth quote discuss the way in which human vision works and its similarities to file compression on a computer. The final quote comes directly from Hippolyte Taine a 19th century French philosopher and is a more poetic take on the process of human vision and how our brain tells our eyes what to see and not the other way around.
To create these works the artist utilized 8×10 film, laser-cutter, hand cutting, bleaching agent, sandpaper, glass and a scribe. The compositions were created in the enlarger when printing in a darkroom and are made up of an arrangement of negatives. The prints are distressed on the surface using sandpaper and were printed only once in the size and dimension you see. They are 1 of 1 and are not editioned.”
Reception: April 16, 2022 | 7–10 pm
516 Fabrication Street
Dallas, 75212 Texas
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