Artist Statement: “Natural Abstractions in Black and White”
I suppose I am better know as someone who photographs the grand landscapes of our particularly amazing home and mountainous backyard that surrounds Invermere. For this show however, I decided to work on something a bit different.
In this collection of photographic images I have focused on perhaps the less obvious, yet very abundant, subjects in nature around the Columbia Valley. You may have to trust me that these images are taken in the region around Invermere, BC, and all in the last three years. I find it intriguing that these images could come from other places in the world, but still give me a familiar sense of being home, here in the Columbia Valley.
Imagery in Black and White is already an abstraction to how we generally experience our surroundings on a day to day basis. I enjoy working with Black and White imagery as it allows me to see things a bit differently, and it makes me focus on the things that make an interesting image without the colour. Things like texture, composition, and exploring wider tonal values become a bit more important without colour.
I feel that through working on this show I have allowed myself to seek out and explore a bit more of what makes this area such a great place to call home.
Ryan Bavin, August 2023
All of the photographs from the show are included below. They are archival inkjet prints I made personally.
Cumulonimbus
Stringy Clouds
Evening Clouds and Moon
Evening Sky and Raven
Raging Water
Seracs
Ponderosa Pinecone
Avens
Spring Aspen
And now for the BONUS round!
The images above are what were included in the show. There were a few more images that were on the short list, but did not make the cut for this show. Some of the contenders are posted below for you to check out!
Burnt Trees and Summer Snow
Snow and Water
Harmon Summit
Thanks for checking out these images. I had a great time photographing and putting this show together. The exercise of trying something different is always interesting to undertake. It feels hard to get out of the box at first, but then it becomes fun and exciting once you feel comfortable breaking free from your usual process!