Avant — French for “before”.
I was inspired by the quiet mystery of Eugène Atget’s photographs during the early 1900s. His images struck me as somewhat reticent, but in a calm and curious way, rather than due to disinterest. The pictures reminded me of the way I felt when as a child, when I would sneak extra time from the day by either staying awake later or rising earlier than the rest of the world.
Through a medium-format film camera, I endeavored to capture the feelings of calm and stillness of the very early morning and a side of urban life that many don’t see -- empty streets, shops that are just opening, and the few people who are out during that nascent time.
I am intrigued by the interplay between a person and their usual setting, which reflects multiple parts of the self. By having my subject sit quietly in a place they are familiar with, while scenes from the outside world slowly take over their room, I create a multifaceted portrait of not just the person, but their entire environment.
By viewing a subject in their most familiar surroundings, can we understand more about them? What does a space say about the person who most frequently inhabits it? Are we able to understand how they feel that day? What they like to read? What colors they enjoy? Are we also able to know how well they fit into their environment? Can we tell whether it is a more communal space, or more of a personal sanctuary? Is their room just a place to exist? Or are they a commanding and forceful presence in this small world?
Do places become marked by our habits and personalities?
Do our environments and we become similar? Do we not only become sick for our homes, but also, do our homes, offices, and rooms feel and display our presence or absence?
Does the space belong to the person, or does the person belong to the space? Are the person and the environment intertwined? Or do they simply exist on the same plane?
Does the person who devotes so much time and energy to it mark the space, and thus does the environment mark the person by being something so familiar?
