| Recollection, Oil on canvas, 2005 "Recollection is made up of several levels of reflection, ranging from mirrored to translucent, and even introspective. Speaking to the painting’s formal qualities, the fixed nature of the image allows the viewer to explore these various levels on a single plane simultaneously. This is something the eye cannot do on its own. When presented with a scene such as this, our eye continually adjusts its focal range, receding and bringing forward what we see, often involuntarily. The layering effect in Carter’s work describes a world perceived in constant flux, but in a medium that allows him to fix it in time. In this work, reflection is also a thematic device, a metaphor for the sensation of memories fleeting. The figure’s eyes are closed as if he is asleep, or lost in thought, and in this way the conflicting reflections connote the internal dialogue of his mind. Or perhaps it is the world passing him by? The reflected buildings and street wash over him in a way that intimates the voluntary isolation taken on in a congested urban environment." -Meredith Wisner, M.S. From the show Contemporary Tactics: Photography's Impact on Media. May, 2006. |
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