Photo-synthesis is a visual representation of how humans invade and then abandon nature.We leave a cultural mark through buildings, vehicles, and unnatural forms, however, a lack of human interference allows the natural world to reclaim its old environment. Nature grows over, around, and into what humans left behind and flourishes in a new but familiar form, creating a whole new aesthetic.
After collecting photos from various locations around Rockingham county of this regrowth it only felt right to print each piece using a natural process as well – further connecting my work to the world around it. The technique I used is called Cyanotype, which consists of treating paper with a chemical solution that when exposed to sunlight starts to develop. I printed my photos inverted as a negative onto acetate paper, which is clear. The printed negative is put on top of the treated paper and left in the sun to develop. After a short 5-8 minutes the final product is discovered. Although this body of work is intended to highlight the relationship between natural and human creation, it also represents a cultural mark that is pushing along the narrative of the relationship between the natural and human experience.
