Suspended Cities I, New York City, USA. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
INVISIBLE CITIES
2013-ONGOING // 35MM MULTIPLE EXPOSURE // NEW YORK CITY [USA] // TOFTLUND [DK] // MEXICO CITY [MX] // MEDELLIN [COL] // HONG KONG // PARIS [F] // COPENHAGEN [DK] // HONOLULU [USA] // BERLIN [D] // BUENOS AIRES [ARG] // ALBANY [USA] // SAO PAULO [BRA] // AARHUS [DK] // VENICE [I] // PROVIDENCE [USA] // PHILADELPHIA [USA] // NEWBURG [USA] // WASHINGTON DC [USA] // MONTREAL [CAN] // CHICAGO [USA]
Invisible Cities unfolds on film and explores concepts of layering in a direct exchange between the city and myself. The work is situated between wander, my roaming the city aimlessly, and wonder, allowing my curiosity to guide me. Years after I started this project I learned that I’m Autistic, and can now see how this was always an expression of my Autistic Perception.
Arriving in any city, I start by walking it; collecting the city with my 35mm camera. I multi-expose the film 4-5 times; building the city onto itself. For the work to arrive at its fullest potential, it is crucial that the multiple exposures happen inside the camera, rather than controlled digitally or in a dark room. This technique creates a distance between me and the work wherein the work is allowed its own autonomy.
The direct relationship between the subject and the medium is paramount, the film holds the image in suspense; a direct imprint of that particular place and light of each exposure, turning the film surface into a memory membrane. I’ve created this work as a distinct collection of places. I collect the distinct places I travel to or live in; building new relationships between time and place, sometimes over a day at others weeks, months, and even years.
My relationship to the subject matter is created through direct interaction as I find myself in discrete places of the world or walking within my city. I am fascinated by the multiple layers of the spatial situation and the idea that cities have personalities. My practice calls attention to the things we often take for granted, and invites the audience to reevaluate their relationship to their own surroundings. While also evoking unexpected connections between distinct geographies, questions the relationship we build to our daily surroundings and invites audiences to reflect on their experiences of being in the city.
The primary concern of my artistic practice is to facilitate a more nuanced discussion about the spaces we find ourselves in. I seek to examine how we are affected by these spaces, which memories and fragments remain within us that create the personal spaces we all carry within, and how they affect our daily life.
Cities and Memory I, Toftlund, Denmark. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Trading Cities II, Mexico City, Mexico. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Writing II, Medellin, Colombia. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Trading Cities, Hong Kong. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and the Sky III, Paris, France. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Paths II, Copenhagen, Denmark. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Light II, Honolulu, Hawai’i. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Desire IV, Berlin, Germany. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Balconies I, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Trading Cities III, Albany, NY, USA. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Ghosts, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Eyes II, Aarhus, Denmark. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Paths I, Venice, Italy. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Desire VI, Newburgh, NY, USA. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Signs V, Providence, RI, USA. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Desire II, Washington DC, USA. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Cities and Writing III, Montreal, Canada. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.
Suspended Cities II, Chigaco, IL, USA. Multiple exposure photograph shot on 35 mm color film.