photography

natures inevitable redemption

in ,

Natures Inevitable Redemption (Eternal Vision - Drone 1001)

Mixed media with 3d printing, 11in x 11in x 8in, 2024 (detail view)

I’ve never worked on a single piece for as long as I did on this one. When I started it in 2022 I had a crystal clear vision in my mind as to what I was making and how the final piece would look. Much to my surprise the more I worked, the more specific and articulate I got with materials the further I got from seeing the final piece come together. Each new detail set higher expectations for the next. The piece was certainly growing and evolving based on what it needed to become through my intuitions. However, once I started on the foliage, it was immediately evident to me that the end was near. My vision of a landscape that was truly overgrown and reclaimed by nature was finally coming together.

This piece depicts a moment in the Eternal Vision story in the far future. It speaks to the idea that all technology eventually becomes obsolete. The notion that nature will eventually prevail and reclaim all it once had. That decay and decomposition will always be beautiful. Nothing is free from the feedback loop of destruction and regrowth, not even technology.

Check back soon for a full gallery of images of the piece and a more elaborate explanation.

eternal vision drone 1002

in ,

Eternal Vision Drone 1002 poster

Somewhere in a distant future, an omnipresent deterrence system reaches beyond the horizon. What was once sold on the utopian ideal of endless peace and security through total surveillance evolved into a system of total control. The presence of continuous observation forced whoever was left deep into hiding sometime long ago. Echoes of the present begin to emerge from the fragments.


The Last Operator

in , ,

The landscape is a natural barren wasteland. A near monochromatic world where everything is covered with a fine red dust. Not very different from the countless depictions of the planet Mars in science fiction stories. But this is not the red planet, this is Earth, in a not so distant future. Anything green in this place has long since dried out to dust and blown away. Here we find the last of the human advisors to the eternal vision drones, looking out over an all too familiar landscape. Just ahead is an old communications relay post. The operator sends the drone out ahead to get an advanced look at the area. Machine Vision reveals all, transmitted directly to the operator's AR (augmented reality) goggles from an encrypted link to the drone. Human vision, augmented by the electro-optical sensors of the drone in real time. Day or night, the night vision and thermal imaging of this system are extremely accurate.

These posts were once a symbol of the total surveillance state that prevailed during the end times. As part of a global deterrence system, these stations monitored all of the communications in the surrounding area. Now they are simple time capsules, waiting to be found. Most of the time they have been completely picked over by scavengers long ago. But this post somehow looks untouched. Is it possible that any of these systems still work? What will be gleaned from the remnants of civilization lost?

The Last Operator, mixed media with 3D printing, 9 x 6 x 7 inches 1:150 scale, 2024

history repeats itself

in , ,

Actual history, an alternative history or even a completely invented timeline, they will all eventually repeat themselves. I find that as time passes there are patterns in what make. Specific ideas that are reoccurring, each time becoming more articulate as I learn new ways to recreate them. I am not just doing the same things over and over again. Both of these images are about similar repeating ideas, but are so very different in how they appear. They both evoke thoughts of searching, a form of future surveillance within a disorienting landscape. One presents an atmosphere so thick that it could be concealing any possible danger. The other creates a similar sense of unease within the landscape, however this time it is vastness that creates the sense of awe or unease. Both are simulated worlds seen through a screen. The first of the two image is of one of the original miniature drones. It was made of kit-bashing model parts and photographed in a glass tank with “practical effects”. The second image is a more recent version of a drone, 3D modeled with the dual intention to 3D print them for miniatures and to use them in digital animations. I think it is import to take note of these kinds of reoccurring ideas that we attempt to resolve or explain over and over again in the studio. Keep searching.

Inquest Model 006, Digital Photograph 2007

Endless Ocean Drone 1001a, 3D Rendering 2023

digital ghosts

in ,

corrupted data… incomplete file structure… error… error… error.

end of transmission

What does digital decay look like? As corruption compounds and data gets fragmented digital hallucinations begin to form. Paranoid thoughts of an artificial intelligence loosing its mind. Autonomous systems acting on lost transmissions and incomplete information drift towards total collapse.

some ideas are destined for the future

in ,

In the studio I work on many things, often moving in many directions simultaneously. As I do this, I’m always focusing on the idea first and then what materials or medium to use to best articulate that idea. Because of this, some ideas get set aside for a future version or iteration. Usually those ideas resurface when I see a potential in a new material or most often a new piece of technology. It has been about 15 years since I first took a took a class to explore the medium of 3D modeling. At that time my ideas and the technology didn’t align for some reason, time was shorter back then. Since that time I have used traditional sculpture and photography to articulate many of my ideas. Using analog techniques to create hyperreal views of what could be simply described as miniature movie sets. But now I find myself in that familiar moment again, when an idea resurfaces through exciting exploration in the studio. My recent research into 3d modeling, painting and texturing those models, 3d animation and augmented reality has really got me thinking. I can start to see some complex ideas coming together within this space. I also believe that asking questions of this digital work and how I can employ it will only make my analog work more dynamic and articulate as well. Check back to see what emerges from the past.

drone 1001a 3d landscape sketch