Idea

A few recent shoots has really got me thinking about what this project really means to me. Lately I've been simply exploring, not setting a guide line for myself; no restrictions or 'cant shoot this rules.' Interestingly enough I have found that I return to the same areas over and over again, like a magnet I am drawn in, I really can't escape it. Shopping plazas are my happy place. Of all the areas in Richmond, and even wherever I travel, the one constant in areas that I shoot are shopping plazas. I know that this is obviously important and I think that I'm starting to realize that this had to be tied in a massive way to what my work is all about. Here are some recent shots:


I find myself searching for the beauty in these often rundown, dirty and sad locations. So many people go in and out of these locations daily and wouldn't even think to stop and admire what they are looking at, and why would they? These are places of business, locations for accomplishing chores, not parks. If people stopped to enjoy their surroundings then these plazas would not be doing what they were made to do; keep a constant flow. Park, buy things, leave. That's it. Excess time spent there is time spent preventing someone else from shopping. But at the right time of day, from the correct perspective you can see something else. The moments often only exist from one angle for a split second, but they are amazing.

I think this is the direction that I need to go in. If people can see a generic cookie cutter shopping plaza in a fantastic light then possibly it could cause them to second guess one themselves. The glass pane is a great medium for achieving this. Where we usually see whats inside a store or next to or behind it, being able to see it all at once balanced into one image is at the same time confusing and striking. Possibly placing the glass images with non window images will give them more context and allow it to be more accessible.