WATERMARKS
Like calligraphy brushes, twigs and grasses draw marks on the transient canvas of water. The rendering made possible by water’s sensitivity to all that touches or pierces its surface. Rain drops and water striders make enso circles. The transparency of water creates a layer below. What lies beneath the surface becomes an underpainting giving the image certain darkness or hue, or, perhaps, adding faint, watermark like elements. Water’s reflectivity composes a layer above, with the mirrored skies, clouds, and trees. All of the parts and their interactions, real or illusionary, contribute to the creation of a complex finished image. When photographing, I feel like the images are being composed by the water in front of my eyes. And I go with the flow.
The series was printed on paper I made with kozo pulp, a process which involved a lot of interaction with water. Thus, the element of water was present not only during the capture, but also in the final realization of the images.