Everyone appropriates space. Maybe you have moved some chairs to create an intimate place for you and a friend, maybe just worn the grass in front of a secluded park bench. Whether it’s the repainting of an abandoned room or simply the movement of a few rocks for a more comfortable seat, you have changed the order of things to better suit you.
I am interested in the visual histories of appropriated spaces, in celebrating and commemorating an organic past where the important parts remain, but the details mutate to fit what we currently need. In our society, all space has been accounted for, so our only option is to take back what we need where it is overlooked. In reusing these leftover corners, we honor the memory of these places; we become part of their histories, part of their peculiar organic evolutions.
My images are of reclaimed spaces within Baltimore’s historic architectural spaces. Like William Christenberry, who photographs disappearing aspects of Southern culture in his home state of Alabama, I find my inspiration in the Baltimore architecture that I grew up with. The places that I photograph are part of an oral history of Baltimore passed down to me from parents, friends, and relatives. I refer to the architecture that I am dealing with as historic both because it has outlived its original use and because it is part of the historic understanding of those living in Baltimore. Through my process of photography and installation, as well as my subject matter, I hope to access our cultural memory: a feeling that we know these places, that they have always been with us.
I originally encountered these places seeking solace from a world beyond my control, stumbling on the human but down-to-earth nature of simple chair arrangements and minimalist altars. I use portraiture to depict individual spaces because of their organic nature and the personality they gain through repeated use. I want viewers to interact with these places on an intimate basis, to be drawn into their individualized natures as one would be drawn to a person. As I explored and photographed these places, they became intimate and human to me. The viewer encounters these places as she would a familiar stranger, or as she would come upon them in life, privately.
I attempted to translate this quality to my audience through placing collaged images of reclaimed spaces in individual spaces on campus. This led the viewer to consider the role of these spaces in her life. The collages physically reflected the buildup of individual space over time, while their fragility made them soften and become a natural part of the space over time. In the gallery, I presented my images in albums that contained a documentation of the image’s development and alteration, from the discovery of the original space to the collage’s installation on campus. This evolution parallels the creation of the original space.
My images are in black and white because their form reveals their personality. The color of these places changes with the season and the time of day; it is their form that is most influenced by individuals. I toned the images brown-green to give them an earthy, inviting feel and to remove them from the documentary feeling that black and white photography often instills. My printing methods also give the images an aged quality, enhancing their familiarity. Their size remains small enough to be intimate, but is large enough to interact with.
Between my rendering of the images and my installation, the viewer comes to recognize that the idea of reclaiming space is not only as old as the images seem, but also as new as the space around her.
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