International Photo Awards 2020 Honourable Mention Fine Art, Still Life Series
For many cultures, magic can be a source of protection and specific practices, texts and objects are thought to shield the user from harm. These images, made during the pandemic, explore natural objects and materials thought to ward off supernatural forces, illness and misfortune. Salt, for example, found deep in the earth's crust, was once a precious commodity and is widely used for purification.
Technical advances, particularly in digital photography, have all been attempts to exercise precision and thus limit the role of chance. In the series Natural Magic, the challenge to suggest a magical experience with the objects led to an experimental approach in my photography. I decided to suspend a veil in front the objects as a visual metaphor for the mysterious division which separates the esoteric realm beyond the actual. An ethereal impression of the objects is created as the veil moves, shields and interacts with the light. The real and the imagined become blurred, giving a benign sense of solace.
