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Light Paintings It is problematical for several reasons to find a classification for the images I call Light Paintings. There is no comfortable niche that can conveniently categorize them, such as is the case for landscape, portraiture, documentary, journalistic, or other types of photography, manifestations that are labeled in accordance with the nature of the subject matter recorded though the camera lens. Moreover, some may argue that light paintings shouldn't be considered photographs at all, because they are not representational images optically captured and projected onto printing paper. Others find it more logical to include them in the category sometimes referred to as mixed media. At various times, in response to viewers' uneasiness about accepting light paintings as photographic art, I have called them Solargrams or Chemigrams. In a strict sense, neither description is wholly accurate, but each provides its own peculiar "handle" for thinking about the processes involved. The ordinary application of the term solargram is to images developed by placing objects on special light sensitive paper which develops-out through prolonged exposure to sunlight. And, the term chemigram refers to the staining or pigmentation process that occurs through the commingling and application of a wide range of chromogenic chemicals. The technique of light painting bears resemblance to the processes that produce solargrams and chemigrams, but it really begins where the other methods leave off. The factor distinguishing light paintings from the rest of photography is not the application of unusual, archaic, or esoteric processes in the production of photographic images; rather it is the absence of such techniques, accompanied by flagrant violation of the traditional darkroom image processing principles (which were devised to facilitate photography's role as a message-bearing medium). The raw materials are inexpensive and standard - artificial light, black and white enlarging paper, and conventional developing chemistry (Dektol, acid stop bath, and Kodafix). The processing procedures are not. In fact, most of them are anathema to the artist who makes Fine Prints (the only exception being archival final processing). But this rule-breaking doesn't mean that technique and sensitive control are not required to produce interesting light paintings. On the contrary, It has taken me many more hours to learn to control (within the medium's limits) the natural inclinations of free light, paper and chemistry than to gain a modest mastery of projection printing techniques. Unlike latent images, recorded as negatives on photographic film through the camera lens, light paintings are direct positive tracings of flow processes and chemical/light interaction that take place over time - exposures (sometimes extended over numerous work sessions) that capture the intricacies of liquid dynamics. Sometimes they appear to resemble human, animal, or other representational forms; at other times they suggest surreal moonscapes/landscapes or nonfigurative abstract images. Chemically induced corrosion is the means by which conventional silver prints work their magic. Light painting technique seeks to harness the natural inclinations of the materials directly, through control and augmentation of the process, retarding and accelerating the chemical interactions according to the intentions of the artist. The act of creating a light painting is very like the process of improvising a musical composition. Future decisions are made based on serendipity, awareness of the path that has been taken and potentials paths to follow, and the desire to bring forth a striking image. I perform each light painting using a range of material-control techniques. First I select the paper quality, grade, and brand; then I begin the performance. Manipulation of flow speed/pattern, dipping, dripping, pulling, spraying, heating, sponging, light-flashing, masking via chemical build-up are a few of the methods I use. Sometimes I include exhausted chemical mixtures in addition to pure chemicals (four trays - the last with a fixer/developer mix). I don't try for specific abstract or representational results; I simply observe how materials are interacting and improvise moment-to-moment, making impromptu decisions as work progresses. Naturally, the editorial process is the most important, final stage - I discard many more images than I keep. Recent Enhancements - Early light paintings were considered finished in their natural state (reflecting the tonal range, hue, and contrast determined by the choice and interaction of materials. I have taken additional liberties with the nature of the process in more recent light paintings. For example, I have intensified selected colors within the frame through application of dyes used to hand color black & white silver prints. One question I often hear from people in the workshops I have taught is "Why is the color range in light painting typically limited to earth tones along with subtle pastel colors?" The answer is that the materials - paper and chemicals - naturally respond that way. For many years, I felt it important not to embellish the color range artificially through application of dyes or other external pigments. Now I take a more free-wheeling approach and use hand coloring techniques to intensify various hues. (The drawback of fading of photo dyes over time is not a serious issue, because after many years the worst that can happen is that the photo returns to its original state, provided it has been made permanent through archival processing.) In 1999 I extended my technique to digital enhancement of light paintings by scanning or photographing finished images with a digital camera. An unfortunate incident prompted me to begin duplicating the original images, something I had avoided because of an aversion to the way light paintings look when photographed on film. A one-person show of my work in Taiwan traveled by truck between galleries at opposite ends of the island. On the final trip back to the home gallery, the truck collided with a bus and spilled about thirty framed prints across the expressway. None were salvageable because the broken glass had scratched the prints beyond repair. So now I produce second generation prints for preservation purposes as well as to enhance colors and tones found in the originals. My purpose in digital enhancement, though, is not to change the inherent nature of the image, but to produce variations on it (such as in Portfolio 3, Group 1, SG1-7 original, SG1-7 Variation 1 and SG1-7 Variation 2).
Phil Winsor January, 2000 |
