My photography often captures traces and evidence of human presence when people themselves are absent. Continually examining the constructs of societies and self, my work reflects an interest in how we choose, individually and collectively, to physically and emotionally occupy environments, now and in the past. As a visual artist, I choose to create photographic images because it provides an opportunity to capture the everyday moments that may go unnoticed by others. Within this process, I often see and interpret the world around me in terms of shapes, textures, colours and forms, as in abstract art. My photographic journey takes a different approach to portraiture and image-making by creating a sense of identity without a single face yet giving a face to the universal reality of the human experience.

My recent series of work looks at the symbolism and meaning of flowers in the occasions of life and death - in celebration, in memory, and in mourning. Like many, I tend to turn to nature to remind my heart and mind of the beauty in life while co-existing with sorrow. Some of these photographs like Beauty Carries Me and Of Material Importance are inspired by “mono no aware” a Japanese term which means “the pathos of things” that can be translated as “empathy towards things” or a “sensitivity to the ephemeral”.

I photograph in natural settings, utilizing the natural light in a process that captures an ephemeral moment of authenticity and truth. Recently, I have introduced new materials to my studio practice by combining my photographs with resin and fresh/artificial flowers, to create multi-layered sculptural pieces that correspond to my subject matter. My photography and sculpture invite audiences to slow down and explore the vulnerability and fragility of the human landscape. Flowers, both fabricated and real, are reminders and remnants, a memento, of lives once lived. The significance is in the meaning and sentimental value given by those who placed them. In each sculpture, within each moment, the essence of being in that moment is preserved. This is a way to hold onto and embrace time even as we grapple with fragmented memories that time, itself, may distort and dilute. As with all that lives, these flowers will come to an end in time, but perhaps not all is lost. Even with the eventual decay of the flowers, the beauty, the sentiment, the purpose…still remains and time is not forgotten.