Nº 11 (Part 1 Kingdom) Book of Miracles
62 x 124” 2024
I began Book of Miracles during the lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic; it has unfolded during wildfires, extreme temperatures, and great political and social upheaval. The project is in conversation with the 16th century Book of Miracles -- a compendium of biblical, astronomical, and apocalyptic miracles. The project aims to visualize phenomena that defy the laws of nature, using fire, paint, and the staging of fantastical scenes. Photography often walks a thin line between fact and fiction, or dwells in a realm where the two cannot be distinguished; my work takes part in this pendulum swing between belief and doubt.
Book of Miracles consists of three parts done at different scales and employing distinct methods. Part I, Kingdom, are huge 5 x 10-foot works composed on a wooden frame using found flora and fauna, augmented by paint, glitter and sometimes by fire. I use the frame as part garden bed, part canvas, part diorama-- it allows me to explore the convergence of ground, sky, and deep sea as well as the dialogue between painting and photography. I then photograph the elaborate tableaux from a scaffold. This all takes place in my outdoor studio under a huge canopy that becomes an evenly lit lightbox and where I keep materials collected from the natural world --antlers, bones, skeletons, milkweed, sticks, vines, leaves, flowers that I use to make the work. (My indoor studio has several freezers where I preserve snakes, rodents, birds, frogs and fruit). The larger pieces can take weeks or months to compose, while the smaller works are more immediate. The photographs in Part II, Portent, are comprised of fantastical scenes that I stage in nearby swamps, rivers and orchards. Part III, Emblem, are small, symbolic works.
Nº 4a (Part 1 Kingdom) Book of Miracles
62 x 124” 2021
Nº 10 (Part 1 Kingdom) Book of Miracles
62 x 124” 2023
I began Book of Miracles during the lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic; it has unfolded during wildfires, extreme temperatures, and great political and social upheaval. The project is in conversation with the 16th century Book of Miracles -- a compendium of biblical, astronomical, and apocalyptic miracles. The project aims to visualize phenomena that defy the laws of nature, using fire, paint, and the staging of fantastical scenes. Photography often walks a thin line between fact and fiction, or dwells in a realm where the two cannot be distinguished; my work takes part in this pendulum swing between belief and doubt.
Book of Miracles consists of three parts done at different scales and employing distinct methods. Part I, Kingdom, are huge 5 x 10-foot works composed on a wooden frame using found flora and fauna, augmented by paint, glitter and sometimes by fire. I use the frame as part garden bed, part canvas, part diorama-- it allows me to explore the convergence of ground, sky, and deep sea as well as the dialogue between painting and photography. I then photograph the elaborate tableaux from a scaffold. This all takes place in my outdoor studio under a huge canopy that becomes an evenly lit lightbox and where I keep materials collected from the natural world --antlers, bones, skeletons, milkweed, sticks, vines, leaves, flowers that I use to make the work. (My indoor studio has several freezers where I preserve snakes, rodents, birds, frogs and fruit). The larger pieces can take weeks or months to compose, while the smaller works are more immediate. The photographs in Part II, Portent, are comprised of fantastical scenes that I stage in nearby swamps, rivers and orchards. Part III, Emblem, are small, symbolic works.
Nº 1 Book of Miracles (Part I Kingdom)
62 x 124”
2020
Nº 7, Book of Miracles (Part I Kingdom)
62 x 124”
2021
Nº 6a (Part 1 Kingdom) Book of Miracles
62 x 124” 2021
Nº 3 Book of Miracles (Part I Kingdom)
62 x 124”
2021
Nº 9, Book of Miracles (Part I Kingdom)
62 x 124”
2022
Nº 6598 Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
38 x 30.25”, 2021
Nº 6802 Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
38 x 30.25”, 2021
Nº 1000 Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2022
Nº 3145 Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2023
Nº 2327, Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2023
Nº 5930, Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2021
Nº 3396 Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2023
Nº 0335 Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
38 x 30.25”, 2022
Nº0409, Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2022
Nº 0713, Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2022
Nº 0972, Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2022
Nº6392, Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2021
Nº 5965, Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2021
Nº 6076 Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2021
Nº 3604 Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2022
Nº 5857 Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
38 x 30.25”, 2021
Nº 6531, Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
30.25 x 38”, 2021
Nº 1777 Book of Miracles (Part II Portent)
38 x 30.25”, 2022
Nº 0685, Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
9.5 x 7.6”, 2023
Nº 4337, Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
9.5 x 7.6”, 2020
Nº 4378, Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
9.5 x 7.6”, 2023
Nº 4061, Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
9.5 x 7.6”, 2020
Nº 4405, Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
9.5 x 7.6”, 2020
Nº 4562, Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
9.5 x 7.6”, 2020
Nº 4226 Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
9.5 x 7.6”, 2023
Nº 0633, Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
9.5 x 7.6”, 2023
Nº 4035, Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
9.5 x 7.6”, 2023
Nº 0509, Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
9.5 x 7.6”, 2020
Nº 3936, Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
9.5 x 7.6”, 2023
Nº 3936, Book of Miracles (Part III Emblem)
7.6 x 9.5”, 2020
Book of Miracles