Impermanence

I take photos in order to build with light and shape. Being a formalist, I seek to capture unique shapes, lines, and silhouettes, often switching between structures that are rigid and geometric, to ones that are more organic, natural, and abstract. 

Coming from a Jewish Modern Orthodox family, I was raised with very strict guidelines during my life. Judaism is not just a set of beliefs about G-d, man, and the universe. Judaism is a comprehensive way of life, filled with rules and practices that affect every aspect of life: what you do when you wake up in the morning, what you can and cannot eat, what you can and cannot wear, how to groom yourself, how to conduct business, who you can marry, how to observe the holidays and Shabbat, and perhaps most important, how to treat G-d and other people. Through Judaism, I’ve been able to articulate what I’m seeing because what I’m seeing is also being directly framed by my familial life and religious affiliation and how my life is actually structured in a very specific way. 

Light is one of the overarching, central, definitive metaphors for Jewish understanding of all of reality and I would say that my relationship with time and my use of light, is a symbolic expression and way of finding control in my life. Using forms that are perceptually appealing and being able to control light and build space using light helps me create order in my life that helps deviate the anxiety that stems from growing up in a rule-driven environment. Using constructed forms, light and shadow, and photographing like a formalist helps me deal with my relationship with time.