The Second Moment

“Everything is gestation and then birthing. To let each impression and each embryo of a feeling come to completion in itself, in the dark, in the unsayable, the unconscious, beyond the reach of one's own understanding, and with deep humility and patience to wait for the hour when a new clarity is born: this alone is what it means to live as an artist: in understanding as in creating.” ? Rainer Maria Rilke I began the series The Second Moment shortly after giving birth to my son. These images explore the act of creation as experienced by the iconic figures of the mother and child, as well as the artist. The figures pictured (myself and my son) are in direct dialogue with Baroque imagery of women and children. This visual reference is made apparent through scale, lighting, and gesture. These appropriated elements call attention to the lingering narratives of the past and the impact they have on our current perceptions of the body, motherhood, and mortality. Water lines run throughout each of the images emphasizing the artifice of what is being presented. In addition, the subjects appear to be submerged creating yet another barrier between them and the viewer. The narrative, suspended by the photographic image, waits to be resurfaced by the viewer.