Rachelle Bussières
Artist Statement
My work explores our relationship to the physical world, time, and perception. At the intersection of photography, painting and sculpture, I employ photographic materials and processes to fabricate images and objects. I am invested in questioning the limit of our perception and control as we try to grasp the totality of the Earth. I take black and white photographs of geological formations as a point of departure to mimic and re-fabricate topographies in the darkroom and in the studio casting cement sculptures. By entering a dialogue between the inorganic materials of the earth, and the subsequent photography chemistry and synthetic used in the making-process, I question the uncanny nature of the materials, their use and function in architecture. Confounding scales and perspectives, I hover between estrangement and familiarity, coming to term with my inability to comprehend the compression of layers of history and time of our physical world.
While At Headlands
While at Headlands, I will continue to explore the dialogue between inorganic and synthetic materials while translating my experience to the landscape. The environment at Headlands will provide a stimulating setting for my black and white photographs. While capturing images on the rugged terrain and trails, I will collect man-made materials inspired by the architecture and history at the Headlands, such as concrete, plastic and wood. I will then use them to mark the paper with chemical manipulations while printing in the darkroom. I intend to collaborate with artists from the Headlands community and gather materials unused in their artwork. Once in the studio, I will shape, cut and install my images and show depth by folds or illusion of folds. In my experimentations, I also intend to use photographic materials directly in the making of cement, plaster and wood sculptures.
