Work
Contemporary American identity can largely be defined by the need to survive on the basis of currency and the employment sought for that purpose. All of these photographs have been funded by corporate entities seeking promotional images, the funds from which sustain the artist. As a PhD student — whenever a new artist would be introduced — I would ask my professors, “Did this artist survive on his/her art? Did this art sustain the needs of the artist? Food? Shelter? Or did this artist have other, non-artistic work?” Rarely were the economic circumstances of production discussed. Rather, we considered the economics of connoisseurship and provenance. With the images in my “Work” series, corporate strategies intersect with artistic vision, and this convergence of interests has resulted in a collection of photographs that audiences can enjoy without concern for the artist’s well-being or any sense of obligation to provide further compensation. In a sense, these are gifts from the artist and his patrons. Also embedded in these images is a paradox of intellectual property: they have been offered with unlimited license to their commissioning entities, yet remain entirely owned by the photographer.