Titillatus Nymphette

Comprised of images of crushed, torn and cut up waste materials that were found together, this intriguing Series is filled with serendipitous “visual” surprises. Its title, Titillatus Nymphette, arose out of recognition of the more obvious representational images in each photograph. That is to say, the waste materials consisted of a broken plastic Pop-art style flower, a few cloth flower pedals, a damaged cloth butterfly, costume jewelry pieces, bits of wire, and several sections of shredded paper . . . all of which was staged, lighted and photographed on my studio work table. Individually, these items do not arouse, bewitch or even charm the eye of the viewer. However, when combined with light they acquire the power to provoke, stimulate, delight and even enchant the viewer. How you may ask? As I was randomly moving all of this stuff about on my studio light pad, the large plastic flower shape developed a degree of static electricity that activated all of the other, smaller, objects. I only had to move the flower slightly and everything else would hop, skip and jump to a new location. Resulting in mesmerizing compositions filled with an ambience of youthful expectation. My first instinct upon finding the broken flower was to break it up into smaller, less recognizable shapes or discard it entirely. However, my risk flutter valve kicked in and pushed me to take advantage of chance. After all, I am primarily a romantic who through selective cropping of realistic images reveals my personal inner world of mystical experiences and I believed that leaving the flower whole might lead to a new path to that world. When photography is used to turn inwards to find beauty and visual aesthetic pleasure it usually drifts toward surrealism and fantasy, but still well within the representational genre. At the root of those creative processes is the sixth sense of instinctive intellectual drive. It flashes before our eyes, holds us and pulls us in and says ‘don’t miss this’. That trice is what abstract photography is all about. It goes directly toward ones inner thoughts, makes us pause and takes us to a visual epistle that transcends our fundamental understanding of life. This series has fun with that ideal in that it makes it possible to see both ends of the spectrum at the same time …all you have to do is stare at one of the photos and you will instantly recognize the flower and probably the butterfly …and in a second or two more your mind will lead you toward the more abstract areas of the composition …into a more timeless virtual world, a world where your creative mind will expand and explore. Note: each image I create is limited to ten archival pigment prints per size, signed and numbered verso.