Artist
Barbara Mason
Project Note(s)
Inkjet Prints on Glossy Photo Paper
Artist Statement
In my Couples Abstracted Project I photographed couples and then distorted their images underneath glass objects. I used pictures of people I know as well as recent candid photos of strangers I observed at outdoor events, restaurants, and grocery stores. I love watching the interactions of couples. I took hundreds of photos with my cell phone and camera, selected my favorites, and abstracted the images to make them both more visually interesting and less recognizable.
The photos are of real people in real situations, but I chose to create abstracted representations of people. My goal is for the viewers to create their own interpretations of why the portraits appear distorted, stretched beyond reality, and in some cases barely recognizable as human bodies and faces.
Biography
A native Californian, I taught dance in colleges and universities around the country for 20 years, and then taught ballroom dance for another decade here in Columbus. I began taking photography classes “for fun” at OSU and found I had a deep interest in creating images. For the past few years I have studied with Ua Chamberlain both privately and in group settings; and this is my first major project under his teaching. My interests in photography include landscapes, flowers, abstracts and portraits
