ARCHITECTURE SERIES

Evacuation

There were two occasions where the city of Charleston was nearly 100% void of human presence while I was living there… Hurricane Dorian forced a mandatory evacuation in September of 2019, and COVID shut the city completely down in April of 2020. It felt odd to be in the middle of the city with only my camera and my thoughts. But it somehow seemed just as it always ‘should’ feel. With the constant hustle and bustle of a tourist-town, it’s easy to get lost in the rush.

On these two occasions I became more connected to Charleston than I would have had I lived there my entire life. When I was able to slow down and pay attention to what the buildings were saying to me, the city became more alive than when the streets and sidewalks are jammed with human presence. It’s ‘alive’ then too, of course, but just in a much… much different way.

The ‘Evacuation’ from a city, quite simply, allows it to breath—and the same goes for me!

Revenant

(Artist’s Statement coming soon…)

Dark Knights

Office park buildings are the guardians of their larger brothers and sisters that stand behind them, which are the crown jewels, if you will. These buildings, of less stature, lurk in the shadows as if not to be seen, but to observe the daily grind and protect their environment. “Dark Knights” is a series that grew from this notion and now I cannot see these types of structures in any other light. 

In order to emphasize the vision, it is indeed this light that plays the most crucial roll, even more so than the composition itself. It is the subdued light that tells their story and their roll in the surrounding environment. The low key processing sets the tone and allows only a small portion to be seen, just as a guardian standing in the shadows would do. Simple sky-glow and a splash of luminance on the surface brings forth only what is important to fulfill their roll as protectors and keepers. Beware, not all are allowed to pass! 

Eminence

High station. Rank. Repute. It is difficult to conjure the proper term for such brilliance. In fact, the attempt seemed feeble… 

Rising up from the shadows below, they stand bright; the greatness is nearly impossible not to recognize. Guarded by their surrounding army of protectors, they become the icons of their immediacy, the crown jewels, if you will. Some demand so much attention that people will travel from far just to witness them first-hand, while others remain reclusive and known only to the locals. Regardless, it’s hard not to stare at these beautiful structures—whether in a metro-area office complex or a downtown urban cityscape—and not take to heart the pure Eminence staring back. 

Elevated Illusions

A surrealistic series of bridges and overpasses depicted in an impossible light, “Elevated Illusions” reveals a more futuristic time and place that we can only dream of. Inspired by the simplicity of lines and shapes, I was quickly transported to another dimension in time when I peered through the viewfinder. The word “elevated” has two meanings in the title…the first and most obvious is the fact the these structures are indeed above our heads; however, the second and less obvious meaning is that our senses themselves become heightened by the manner in which the light has landed upon each surface throughout the image. In photography, we have two choices (for the most part), and that is to depict reality or to create illusions. I tend to gravitate towards the latter quite frequently in much of my work.

This is a world that simply does not exist…an almost Gotham-like state of emptiness and ruin, in which there is no traffic, no people, and only structures of concrete and metal spanning the landscape. The softening of the sky, created by long exposure techniques, provides a sense of tranquility in an otherwise rigid environment. Both inviting and uninviting at the same time, the images in this series represent a feeling of confusion that many of us face on a daily basis.

Fistful of Stoned Illusions

Classic architecture truly warms my heart, and when it’s coupled with modern design it only gets better in my opinion. “Fistful of Stoned Illusions” brings out the best of both worlds in such a way that my vision was set in stone from the first time I laid eyes upon it. Right away I knew the angles that were needed and the control of light required to bring this vision to fruition. At 5 stories, it’s not a very tall building, but is quite enormous regardless, and surely as strong as they come. As this remarkable building sits at the end of a runway outside of a local municipal airport, I can think of no other structure that is so deserving of its placement in both time and space.

It became my absolute goal to control the light in such a way as to only add to the illusion of this time and space relationship. By controlling the light in this manner, I feel that it has become like an ancient Roman god surrounded by an aura of light and darkness in a surrealism of stories yet told. Windows that cannot be punctured by exterior eyes, stone that will not fall, and columns that stand the test of time are the facets that will only release their stories to the right person at the right time. Secrecy is the name of the game here, and many will come, many will go, but only a few will be in the know. I hope that you enjoy “Fistful of Stoned Illusions” as much as I did in the creation of it. Cheers!

Of Linear Emotions

A musical image series rising from an underlying beat and captured at Plaza Tower One in the Denver Tech Center, Colorado. I say it is musical because when I look at this building I see music, or what reminds me of music anyway. I say it rises from an underlying beat because it has moved me for so many years now.

This beautiful, linear architecture rings quite emotionally to me and has for as long as I can remember. It is a structure that I have been listening to for many years and have always wanted to spend some time photographing. This past spring of 2015 I finally gained my rights to do so. While photographing this beautiful piece of architecture, it really hit me at how in-tune with music it is. From the lines of the building that make up the sheet music, to the arches that provide the notes, it is truly a musical place “Of Linear Emotions.”

Each image has a pre-title, if you will, that dictates its individual musical representation and how I see it in regards to its own musical space. I truly feel that while this building may not stand amongst others in a downtown environment, it perhaps stands taller because of that fact. Standing alone in an office park environment, it becomes the conductor of a really wonderful musical masterpiece. I hope that this series rings as much in your ears as it does in mine. 

Platform D

Denver’s Union Station has a long and notable history having first opened in May of 1881 and establishing Denver as a gateway to the west. However, as time passed and traveling by train became less relevant, it became clear that the now-historic Union Station was in need of redevelopment.

While many facets of the facility were included in this redevelopment plan (including renovating the entire inside of the original building), it was specifically the train platform and canopy that caught my attention and became the main study of this series of imagery. Though the historic building still stands tall and remains an architectural fixture for Denver, I believe it is the old-meets-new architecture that really sets this train station apart from all others. Officially re-opening on July 26, 2014, this arch-like architecture is truly stunning to see and it became my goal to capture this experience at night, when lit from below and void of pedestrian traffic. The sheer size and enormity of the structure is a lot to absorb all at once; however, my objective was to do just that. My vision was to have absolute focus on the platform and canopy by being placed against a black sky, thus enabling this giant structure to jump out of each image. Using several wide-angle lenses perched at appropriate locations coupled with post processing techniques, I feel my vision has been realized. I hope you will enjoy Denver’s Union Station as I have expressed it within the “Platform D” series of imagery. Cheers!

ARCHITECTURE SINGLES

Open each image to see the full frame and read the write-up (if applicable)