This portfolio deviates from documentary “truth.” Rather, it is silent theatre that emphasizes a fictional presentation of a set of urban symbols. The symbolic content is meant to be archetypal—presenting some archaic concern rooted in the human psyche.
August Sander (Citizens of the 20th Century) hoped to use photography as a universal language that reflects a path to demonstrable “truth.” He divided humanity into 7 distinct types, presented in their typical surroundings.
Conversely, Richard Avedon (In the American West) openly stated that his depiction of humanity involved manipulation and submission. For example, he obliterated the surroundings by placing his subjects against a white backdrop.
Unlike Sander and Avedon, I avoid any pretense of capturing “truth” via portraiture in my depiction of Street Life. The hyper-intense coloration of the surroundings emphasizes a psychological drama rather than the stereotypical subjects depicted.
