Primal Decay

Whether through growth or decay, all things will inevitably change. My work explores the naturally formed abstract compositions that develop as time has its effects on different foods. I photographed different breads, fruits, and vegetables after they had time to grow past the point of consumption when new biomorphic forms, textures, and colors develop. The photographs concentrate on form and color rather than documenting biology. The images are inkjet prints; some modified through collage, others by adding a silk screen print over the photograph.
Everything is one thing as much as it is all things. All things decompose, going deeper and deeper like a fractal image, down to the quantum level, where even then it doesn’t end. This body of work was created with the idea that this growth is something generally disregarded and unseen, yet its life continues to develop even after it is no longer useful. In this perspective, the abstract compositions of mold and decay can take on the patterns in an aerial view or the surface texture of a planet. The images bring attention to the irony of something small and considerably insignificant resembling something much more grand, as well as the idea that the organic world provides an unlimited amount of useful, formal information. Repeated shapes relate to similar shapes seen in the formation of any new life.
I am inspired by the contradictions presented in Minor White’s photographs, where images of small objects replicate the patterns found on larger, extraterrestrial ones, while mixed media artist Mark Bradford’s use of complex layering influenced the collages. My greatest interest, however, lies with the patterns formed throughout the natural world. As such, I also find inspiration in the work of fashion and textile designer Lee Alexander McQueen. His attention to details present in nature permeates every aspect of his work, bringing me to look closer at all of nature when creating. After all, nature is the source of everything.

Natural Lineage

Glass & Color

Screenprints