Scene In Stone
Artist's Statement:
I have, on several occasions, had the opportunity to photograph the 'red rock' formations found in the American Southwest. These landscapes are magnificent, but portraying their grandeur within a small two-dimensional image is always a challenge. While photographing these formations, I found myself wondering what might be found if, instead of looking outward towards the massive number of rocks arranged into a grand landscape, one peered inward, letting a single rock become the entire image.
What if instead of the rocks making up the landscape, there were landscapes contained within each individual rock? What if there were rocks that contained shapes and patterns that were images in and of themselves?
As I began to look at slices of rock that were available from several different mining sources, I found that a truly unbelievable array of shapes, colors, and patterns could be found within them. In many instances, I was amazed to find that these patterns did, indeed, look just like miniature versions of the landscapes I was so used to photographing; images of the outside world that were reflected and indelibly etched into stone.
These "Scene In Stone" landscapes have been photographed using a technique called cross-polarization, which removes the glare from the surface of the stone and allows the underlying texture and colors to show through. A macro lens was used to capture these extreme close-ups, with each individual photograph representing approximately a 20x15 mm area of each rock.
So, shrink yourself down and enjoy your walk through these imaginary landscapes!
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