A Remedy for Difficult Times - Yvonne Dalschen
“Our duty is to experiment” Alexander Rodchenko
During this time of 'Six Feet Apart,' photographers all around the world have been taking a good look at their reduced surroundings. Photography has a definite advantage; nothing is needed but the maker and some light. Even the camera is optional, light on paper, and some chemicals, anything goes. The camera can be tilted, moved, shaken, the image manipulated or not.
Abstract photography, in particular, is deeply subjective and often lets the viewer wonder about the process of its making. The pandemic has made the world strange, and photographers responded by reconsidering their reality as shadows and patterns. Life's outer defamiliarization is mirrored by making familiar things look strange, create visual puzzles, or even new worlds. The human shape is, if at all, distorted and only partially present. As Craig Raines says: "Now you don't see it, then you do."
Abstraction is often criticized as an intellectual game; however, there is emotion and beauty in these images that show a perspective of the world only possible through photography. By translating limited spaces and changed routines into new explorations, abstract photography works as a remedy for difficult times.
#lifeatsixfeet has grown to 5000 posts, and this gallery is a sampling of the experiments going on since March. Take a look to get inspired or connected. - Yvonne Dalschen
Yvonne Dalschen is a photographer based in Oak Ridge, TN. She received an MA in comparative literature from the Ludwig Maximilans Universität Munich, Germany and a Photography Certificate from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She photographs for a number of community groups, has exhibited in juried group shows nationally and received a Bailey Opportunity Grant in 2020.