I experienced a revelation when I realized that my actual, heartfelt sight was not damaged at all; my sight loss did not change my visual acuity. I was kept awake at night, thinking about the next photographs that would come from my mind and heart.
All of the images included in the portfolio I am submitting with this application were made since that time. During the last ten years, I’ve used my antique, large-format camera to create pictures using the 19th century processes of cyanotype, platinum and albumen. These photographs are directly related to the prose of the great American transcendentalists Emerson, Thoreau, Dickenson and Whitman who spoke to me by way of audiotape. Much of my work also reflects upon 19th century photographic tradition. Two of my heroes are William Henry Fox Talbot, the first photographer to walk the line between science and art, and Julia Margaret Cameron who created spirit-filled photographs of people in her innermost circle.
Shortly after the beginning of the loss of my sight, I discovered that one of the few times I could move beyond that loss is when I’m creating pictures. My visual impairment has helped me to focus on essentials. The content of my photographs includes family, friends, a few beloved objects, and self-portraits with allegorical references to illness and recovery. next>
