Photomanipulation nominee

Throughout her work, Yayoi Kusama uses polka dots as a metaphor for giving up personal identity and becoming one with the universe.  "Far beyond the reaches of the universe," she says, "infinity is trying to communicate with us” and it reaches out through her work as an infinite series of polka dots. This staged photography series is an exploration of the themes that run throughout Kusama’s work. In this series, female figures are clothed, covered or somehow encased in polka dots.  In each photo the identity of the figure is intentionally obscured, blocked or moved out of frame while the motif of polka dots gives indication of the larger forces at play within these micro universes.  This series explores the idea that our human identity is both intertwined and intrinsically linked to a cosmological identity and that we, as mere dots in the universe, are a very small part of a much larger entity that exists concurrently within and outside of us. 

Patty Maher was born in Toronto and completed undergraduate and graduate degrees in English Literature at the University of Guelph. Her work as a fine art photographer began in 2010 and since then has been featured and recognized in numerous online and print publications around the world including a video interview with Yahoo Productions created for the series "The Weekly Flickr". Patty has also received recognition in a number of prestigious photography contests including the PX3 Prie de la Photography Paris, Moscow International Foto Awards, and the International Photography Awards.