Through my photography, I engage in a meditative exploration of place, weaving together concepts of identity, memory, and perception. My process often parallels my video work, capturing still images alongside moving footage as a way to reframe and deepen my experiences in the environment. These images serve dual purposes: documenting the tangible while searching for an enigmatic quality that transcends the immediate and connects to something immense and ineffable. Photography, with its ability to create illusions of boundless time and space, becomes a tool for contemplating the natural world and its layered meanings. It reveals landscapes not just as physical terrains but as politicized, bureaucratic, or metaphorically sacred spaces. Each image challenges the viewer to consider the tensions between the natural and constructed, the ephemeral and eternal, and the personal and collective. The post-production process is integral to my practice, serving as a creative space where the inexplicable in an image is accentuated. Experimenting with color tones, textures, and compositing, I construct multi-layered narratives that blend observation and imagination. An example of this is my work, Canyon , a composite created from drone footage. In editing, I was struck by the stark contrast between the black shadows of slot canyons and the sunlit, washed- out landscape, evoking the night sky. By juxtaposing the canyon with a starry expanse, the image transforms into a dialogue between earth and cosmos, light and dark. The canyon’s shadows frame the stars like a natural canvas, a reminder of the interplay between opposing forces and the beauty born of their interaction. Through this practice, I aim to offer viewers a deeper contemplation of the natural world, challenging perceptions of place and inviting reflection on the connections between the material and the infinite. STEVEN J. YAZZIE (Diné, Pueblo of Laguna, European Ancestry)
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HOW TO SEE, 2023 ARCHIVAL PIGMENT PHOTOGRAPH 28 X 28 INCHES TOWARD BEAUTY, 2023 ARCHIVAL PIGMENT PHOTOGRAPH 28 X 28 INCHES FALLING, 2023 ARCHIVAL PIGMENT PHOTOGRAPH 28 X 28 INCHES
IMAGES COURTESY OF THE ARTIST AND GERALD PETERS CONTEMPORARY
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