Paper short abstract:

This presentation explores the relationship between memory, imagination and the perception of the urban realm through a discussion of my visual arts practice. My work engages with the multiplicity of the city by revealing hidden realities that become visible through the photographic process.

Paper long abstract:

In this presentation I will explore the relationship between memory, imagination and the perception of the material urban landscape through a discussion of my visual arts practice, Using photographic media, my work seeks to engage with the multiplicity and complexity of the kaleidoscopic urban sphere by revealing hidden or unnoticed aspects of everyday life within the city. The flux and flow of the dynamic urban sphere produce a layered experience of temporal and spatial perception, creating a living montage in which memory, imagination and the material world combine. My images seek to depict this montage through a manipulation of light and colour, de-familiarising the urban landscape by disrupting the boundary between legibility and illegibility, between figure and ground, and between subject and object, in order to deconstruct and interrogate the process of perception. Furthermore, my work challenges the perception of the photographic medium, often pushing photographic technology beyond its comfort zone to produce images that do not always resemble how we expect 'photographs' to appear. My practice questions the indexical nature of the photograph, blurring the lines between painting and photography to explore the role of memory and optical illusion within perception. I use photographic technology to reveal hidden 'realities', which become visible through the recording and editing process. The distortion and disorientation, created through these images, aims to prompt the viewer to consider how memory and imagination impact his/her own perception of urban temporality and spatiality.