Fine Art nominee

The process used to create this piece is wet plate collodion tin type. It is a very arduous process which asks for a lot of patience and concentration from my subjects and I. The process records a positive on a metal plate that can not be "reprinted," and must be developed on site, resulting in a one-of-a-kind, original artwork. The process is incredibly exhilarating allowing for unpredicted and exciting results with each creation.

This portrait was taken for the band, Ancient Warfare's recent album ' The Pale Horse'. The title of my piece stems from the myth of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse. In the story, four riders are summoned to set a divine apocalypse on the world. Each rider has a different colored horse which symbolizes their burden. White for conquest; red for war; black for famine and pale for death. Each rider voices "Come," and then goes to fulfill their duties. 

Ancient Warfare's album is based upon the pale horse. They have a song called, 'Winter Times,' with the lyrics, "Like the Winter Times. Come and goes." Juxtaposing those lyrics with the story above makes me think of the band members as being riders in the myth.

I am a freelance photographer based in Lexington, KY, and a graduate of University of Kentucky's College of Communication, with an emphasis in Photography & Alternative Printing.

In 2011, I had the opportunity to travel to Shanghai, China. Here, I realized the love that I have for photographing people. Through the lens, I can show others what beauty I see in those around me. I celebrate this beauty by expressing their unique qualities in photography.

In my free time, I volunteer at local film photography labs. I also volunteer in Honduras by working to build education & sustainability within their community.

In my fine art studies, I have had the opportunity to study with wet plate collodion photographer John Coffer on his farm in New York, learning the process of wet plate collodion - tin types. Since then, I've been working with the process in my home in Lexington, KY.

My wet plate work was curated into the Carey Ellis Show at the University of Kentucky, December 2013 in Lexington, KY. My work has also been shown in Corpus Christi, TX in May 2014 at Delmar College in the exhibition titled: Coated. Sensitized. Exposed.