“Spatial Empathy” describes the awareness of an individual to the proximity, activities, and comfort of people surrounding them. It is related to the notion of personal space, the concept that an individual has ownership of their immediate surroundings; and for others to invade this space represents an infringement on their privacy.
I stole the title for this body of work from my three-year-old niece. She was initially afraid of the shadows created by the canopy her mom placed over her bed. My sister-in-law was about to take it down when she said, “never mind, shadows love me!” These neon gel pen drawings were first exhibited in Portland, Oregon, at a café called Albina Press, in the Fall of 2022
As a poet, appropriation and collage have always been my primary mode. Distilling and transforming text. Layering and arranging text. My poetic interests have also leaned towards the visual arts: typography, page-space, dirty minimalism.
These junkmail collages were intended as a daily practice. Use only what falls through the mail slot. Be attentive to the rips and stains and bruises the paper incurred in its travels.
As much as anything, I think that what has guided and sustained my work as a photographer is curiosity, the desire to see what something looks like as a photograph. I’ve always been fascinated by the “what it is, what it isn’t” factor of photography—how the literal can become figurative by changing the angle of view, the distance from the subject, or the light.
I started work on the “Gloomy Blooms” photo series in May 2020. The country had gone into Covid lockdown in March, and like many people, I was struggling to adapt to my new, more isolated life. I’m an introvert, and alone time is very important to me, but even introverts have our limits. The lockdown made me realize how much I depend on seeing my friends and family.
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