Backs to the camera, my subjects are mostly unseen. Their gestures ride the line between vulnerability and empowerment, bending the idea of confrontation in portraiture. Instead of gazing at the viewer, they gaze into darkness.

Do they see potential or uncertainty? Do they feel hope or anxiety? Without facial clues or background — and without knowing the true intent of the artist or the subject — the viewer is left with more questions than answers. Instead of the image confronting the viewer, the viewer confronts his or her own relationship to the unknown.

— Ivette Spradlin