Impressions in Light
Samantha Jane Davis Seeside Agency and Publishing
First Published in 2011 by Samantha Jane Davis through Seeside Publishing Tel: +27 83 287 9555 Photography and book design: Samantha Davis Editor: Shaun Brauteseth Copyright Š Seeside Publishing, 2011 Photographs copyright Š Samantha Jane Davis, 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means- electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise- without prior written permission from the photographer. For more information: Samantha Jane Photography 18 Dormy Place Walmer Port Elizabeth, 6070 South Africa sam.jane.davis@gmail.com www.samanthajanephotography.com
Impressions in Light CONTENTS 1. Abstract by Samantha Jane Davis 2. A time for everything 3. Autumn/ Winter 4. Spring/ Summer 5. Biography 6. Acknowledgments
Impressions in Light My intention with this book was to document the personal journey of discovery I have been on- as I have sought to discover my own personal vision and method of expression within photography. Impressions in Light is a body of work inspired by emotion, atmosphere, light and feeling- or the suggested and not the delineated. It’s about interpreting an impression, rather than depicting as is. There is a beautiful language of light, color, texture, composition, emotion, feeling and words that can be stitched together to express feeling and create experiences. This is where Impressions in Light finds its existence. The subject matter is focused around the light found within beauty and life. Presently I find myself in a season of awakening, inspired by a journey to discover my own personal vision, and its become a time of purity and softness within light, and depth within emotional expression. This awakening spans the limits of expression, techniques and various methods of digital representation as well as the desire to take the photographic image further than I have before. Impressions in Light is subjective, with every image being shaped by perception and thought. It’s purely the way I see. Impressions in Light Is shaped around a passage of scripture entitled, A Time for Everything- a passage that highlights the time and seasons of life. The aim of this book is seemingly simply, yet intricateas it began as a medium to find my own personal vision, yet ended up addressing some of my deepest questions. It started with a personal exploration of light and its characteristics: of how it shapes and mould, weaves and changes- yet ended up as a journey to find my own personal vision within photography. I recently read the only way to be successful in our image-saturated society to to be true to your personal vision- as ‘what is’ photographed plays second fiddle to ‘how it’ is photographed. Photography is always subjective, it is a representation of our way with the world- how we see, how we feel and what we show when we create. As we approach a scene, we consciously or subconsciously impose our ‘story’ onto the scene- this is an incredibly powerful tool as it makes a photograph an artwork- yet without that point of understanding it is a tool in unskilled hands. In order to be truthfully creative to yourself, you need to be able to harness the deep personal creativity of your soul. Therefore understanding your own heart is of utmost importance within the world of art.
As I began to try define my vision I immersed myself in silence, and consequently came face to face with the deep questions of my heart- that for so long have laid dormant, subdued by the rush of life. I tried to create and discover my personal vision, yet the growing sense of unrest within me halted the creative process. I quickly realised that personal vision is shaped around an understanding of yourself and the depth of who you are- as these inner expressions shape the output of our work in a far greater way than most realise because one photographs from their emotional response to a situation, and this response will be profoundly different for two people. Therefore this work was a journey into silence and stillness- of quietening my soul and addressing the depth of my heart. So often, silence is feared as it exposes the reality of who we are. Without the distractions of life, we have to address certain things. For so long, I have avoided silence, yet this body of work forced me to immerse myself in silence and find a peace that eluded me. It was as if I needed to first address the deep questions of my heart before I could pursue the creative process of defining my own vision, yet somehow these two strands have naturally weaved themselves together to form the most beautiful body of work, Impressions in Light. Autumn/WInter started as I began to address my fears and seek a way to creatively express this through imagery. Nature was an obvious choice for me, as nature represents the one place I always find rest. The common thread through my work should quickly indicate the process that has been unfolding in my mind and soul- the process of finding peace. From young I have been questioning and wondering- there was never silence for me, only multiple shades of noise, and fear. The biggest instigator of my search for peace was my discontentment with time. I remember being sixteen and feeling as If I had wasted so much of it. Time just cannot be held, it slips by so fast. Many of the images in this book represent time, and its ever moving presence. I was fixated with the notion of death, and the fear that surrounds it. To know peace in this life, one must have understood and made peace with death. The notion of time passing so quickly and death being ever so close, made everything seem futile to me. These images represent my quest to find peace within and a reason for existence. The very thing I always wanted is what I began photographing- as if somehow emerging myself in those scenes would lead to the peace I needed. It was time for me to tear down and rebuild.
Spring/Summer was created from a place of peace and deep acceptance. My soul has finally found a place free from the questions and the fear- where it truly rests. I have found a safe place amidst a stormy sea, and a meaning of existence that outweighs everything. I no longer chase the wind, or fear time or its absence for all things are held together. It in only in a place of knowing the unconditional love of God, that a soul will ever know peace- and hope. It is in silence you hear the voice of the Holy Spirit, it is in silence you face the raw emotion you feel and it is in silence you find truth. Where there was once darkness, there is now light. I have found truth and consequently, life. Many of these images are layered with various amounts of texture, often text and stitching. Each element within these images is rich in symbolism and carries a depth of meaning. Besides being a beautiful visual element, the stitching is symbolic of the language of line, color, texture, composition and context that can be stitched together to create images, or more so, that is also already stitched and held together all around us. Oceans, trees, flowers, clouds, wind and time – life and humanity- is all held so perfectly, invisible kept together. “For by Him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible...all things were created by him and for Him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” Colossians 1 A great deal of comfort was found for me in the passage of scripture, A Time for Everything, taken from Ecclesiastes. I included it twice in the book- merely to emphasis every image representing a different time In my life. There was a time to question and seek, and now there’s a time for peace. There was a time for weeping, but now there’s a time for dancing. Now is a time for exploration and adventure, for seeing, experiencing and expressing for the old has gone and the new has come. What time are you at in your personal journey? The content of the work is largely shaped around my fascination with creation and the beauty of life. Enjoy the simple quietness of these images, but more than that may you see the life found within these photographs of contained expanses. May they challenge you to immerse yourself in nature, and possibly, if your heart is open- meet the Creator of all this beauty; as you look, may you also look inside and address the fears that remain- there is a time for everything. Most importantly, as you look at these pictures, may you not just see beauty, but also hope. If God can put together a tree with such intricacy and care, how much more does He not care for us.
A Time for Everything There is a time for everything, and a season for every purpose under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.
Autumn/Winter A time of questions and of searching. A time to look and find.
Spring/Summer A time of rest, and a time of peace. My soul is satisfied. I no longer chase the wind, or fear time or its absence- for all things are held together.
Samantha Jane Davis I’m a photographer, artist and creative individual with a deep love for people, the environment and everything beautiful. Reality, life and beauty is so alive around me- moving me from deep within my heart- that I have to create and I must express. Creativity is intrinsic to my nature. My work is underpinned by the desire to look beyond the visible and the presented, to capture the unseen, or the emotion of a subject. I’m passionate about capturing atmosphere, light and emotion, of letting photography transcend the literal. I’ve received my National Diploma in Photography (2009) cum laude and I’m currently completing my BTech (Degree) in Photography at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University. I’m a South African photographer currently based in the Eastern Cape, specialising in portraiture and documentary photography. However, my artistic field spans much wider to include artistic practices such as fine art photography, lomography, visual journaling and book design. I use text, colour, texture or anything else to convey my message. Often this message is not only conveyed through the finished project, but also through the presentation or installation of the work or the journaled process work that accompanies the finished project. During 2010 I received recognition from the PPSA Sony Profoto awards for my photographic work. Winning the Sony Profoto Full Time Student Portfolio of the Year award as well as a gold award for my Landscape Portfolio entitled ‘Beautiful Africa’, and a gold award for my Portraiture Portfolio entitled ‘Expression and Perception’ and can now be viewed in the 2009 Sony Profoto Awards book. Other publications and websites featuring my work include: 200 Eastern Cape Artists, Fresh Milk: Friendship, Family, Love and Laughter, Photocomment, PIX, Image and Text and Sony World Photography Organisation. I’ve had work featured in ten exhibitions including the Fresh Milk: Friendship, Family, Love and Laughter international traveling exhibition. Last year I had a photograph selected for the Fresh Milk: Friendship, Family, Love and Laughter collection. Selected as one of 150 out of 40 000 images, it will be published in their book and will travel the world as part of their traveling exhibition for ten years.