Artwork

KC: Faust & Garden

Artists/Creators: Chick Rice (Creator)
Kate Craig (Subject)
Date: 1985
ID #: BG5832

Physical Description

Medium: gelatin silver print
Support: paper
Dimensions: 63.8 cm 53.6 cm 5 cm (Frame)
Object Description: Portrait of Kate Craig.
This photo is "from Portraits from Three Great Nations: Disorientals, Accidentals & Ornamentals.

"It’s largely about the power of the photographer. Of their identity, seeing and perception. Of control, of who I grant ‘immortality’ to. Of questioning mainstream notions of what is expected from human based portraiture. This is the ‘Faust’ portion of the work.

"These portraits of fairly well known people (in my circle at least) are photographed so close they violate personal space. Often they were made to crouch into uncomfortable positions as the holder for the spot light was a hiking boot. This was pre-studio days.

"I refused to focus the camera to accommodate the short focal distance, and the resulting portrait is intentionally out of focus. They are lit in the most unflattering and portrait lighting possible, a powerful pin spot shining into their eyes and face.

"The ‘garden’ motifs are the foliage or floral elements which add additional shadows spraying onto the faces. It mimics violent acts and gestures if effected by offensive weapons, yet result in sometimes aesthetics flourishes.

"Titles of the photographs are notated by the sitters’ initials only. For example, K.C. from Faust & Garden.

"The series title, ‘Faust & Garden’ refers to a mainstream magazine of an unchallenged lifestyle… beyond surviving and the basics to being able to pay attention and energy to creating gardens and decorating homes, a privilege not enjoyed by most globally.

"I was caught up in the bloom of talented and beautiful young creative people at this time and decided to pursue them to make positive leaning portraits of them. The camera is turned vertical to show more of the body, a departure from the head and shoulders I previously explored. It was a bigger gamble for me to take on directing body language and natural lighting. Practically all the photos in the series were made under natural light, something hard to control, which meant the subjects were placed in the correct (for the image) position rather than lighting placed to accommodate them."
-Taken from correspondence with Chick Rice, March 2022

History

Collection: Morris and Helen Belkin Art Gallery Permanent Collection
Credit Line: Anonymous gift, 2019
Related Exhibitions: –

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