Powerhouse

This project began by looking at the distance established between photographer and subject when mediated by photographic tools. Documentary photography, especially, echoes with familiar refrains of "hiding behind a lens". However, it is the general idea of isolation - even in the face of an earnest longing for engagement - that led to this device.

In the spirit of the cardboard fort, I am a camera serves as correlative crutch, personal suit of armor, and awkward escape pod. Football shoulder pads are welded to an interior steel frame and connected to the roof, suspending the box above the photographer.

An integrated wooden easel holds enlargement paper negatives up to 20x24 inches in size, at a focal length of 9 inches. The shutter, operated via interior plunger, holds a micro-drilled aperture. A light-tight skirt, mounted to the inside bottom edge of the box, cinches around the waist. Legs are left free to locomote both photographer and device.

Series ongoing.