I have been working on two approaches to the nude reflected: reflected in water often with the camera underwater, and reflected in scratched, broken and partially de-silvered mirrors.
Over thirty-five years of photographing this same subject may sound limiting, but I have found it to be immensely rewarding and rich. While my interest in photographing the nude reflected in mirrors and water has not changed, my life experiences continue to shape the forms and reflections I see through the lens so the images continue to evolve.
I am not fundamentally opposed to altering the image through darkroom or computer manipulation, but it is the act of exploring with my eyes that brings the intuitive process to its full potential for me. Intuition is an integral part of the creative process for me. When I make an image that becomes a “keeper,” it is because I have made a leap from what I know to an unfamiliar place full of intrigue that my conscious mind could not have taken me. The intuitive process takes me to the edge of what I know and, more interestingly, to the edge of what I don’t know.
Ultimately, my goal has always been to explore the body, not to alter it. I want to find the camera angle from which the forms can be the most interesting they can be–whatever that is. It leads me to explore angles, space, reflections, and light. I strive to make the forms make sense visually and then trust the poetry or metaphor will follow. Sometimes it does.