VERTIGO

Andalucia Series

WINTER 2011

I experienced trauma to my right ear in February of 2011 and have had vertigo ever since….it is a very debilitating condition which is quite unpredictable.

I had been invited and anticipated a wonderful trip to Madrid and Andalucía with a small group of friends….and decided to keep my travel plans…with the assistance and medical advice from two of my physicians I went…

The type of vertigo has affected my peripheral vision as well as being unable to look up or down….so my world is one on the horizon….

Religious influence in architecture is prevalent in all corners of the world and in Andalucía, it’s amazing…with its rich history in Islamic, Jewish and Christian beliefs present in each structure, you’ll find very intricate ceilings, tiled floors and magnificent mosaics.  In order to take it all in, I had to “shoot” my photographs without looking up or down...knowing that I would be able to download them onto my computer for editing.

In rather simplistic terms….this experience was rather “psychedelic” while we visited the varied sites of an amazing itinerary.

Working in my studio, I reflected on the compositions of each picture and began the cropping process to create new works.  I realized that I wanted to capture these stimulating images in a layering format in order for you to view them just as I had when I was on site...I call these works “photo vignettes.”  The images are dramatic and yet have a visual veil to them.

This body of work will continue to fifteen vignettes.  My enjoyment of painting comes through with the selection of elements and then determining the desired opacity much like mixing paint colors.

It is so gratifying to have turned such a debilitating and unsettling physical illness into a body of work of lovely spaces and elements from Andalucía…it truly brings me comfort to know I created something I love from this difficult situation. 

All photo montages are digitally printed on archival paper