Monolith

"Buildings in this world are elusive subjects revealing bits of a greater story, things secret yet familiar—memories felt but indefinite." —Sean Perry Monolith portrays Manhattan's towers through four movements: fortresses, illusions, obstacles, and meditations. Inspired by the writings of Ada Louise Huxtable and the visionary drawings of Hugh Ferriss, the photographs treat the built environment as a visceral hardscape—structures interacting with light and air, reactive beyond their tangible design and mass. Working with a Hasselblad camera and Tri-X film, I photograph how light falls on these buildings, animating them with posture and presence. We glimpse fragments between them, in their conversations with clouds, in their mutual reflections. Mirages appear—forming new constructions—and dissipate. Some block our movement and view of the farther horizon. Occasionally, object and light syncretize and the world appears briefly revealed, potent, one's tiny self clearly reflected. In these captured moments the buildings so rendered direct our journey—like cynosures—through the constellations of the City. The project comprises eighty photographs, developed in collaboration with Gregory Wakabayashi, an art director who worked with Richard Avedon and Saul Leiter. The work has been designed as a book. For print inquiries or to discuss publication opportunities, please say hello.