These photographs are taken from a collection of images of the Newtown Creek, a small industrial waterway in New York City.* The photographs are of the water at the Newtown creek; the surface of this water is evidence of its history. While the images are physical traces of this specific place, that specificity functions as the underpinning for a more reflective exploration. The images of water- containing chemistry, trash, and waste- suggest microcosms and macrocosms that embody patterns found throughout the cosmos, from atoms and molecules to stars and galaxies. The abstracted images inspire a sense of wonder, one rooted in a paradox between beauty and disgust. I am attracted to the space in this work where it is unclear whether one is viewing atmospheric elements comprised in the universe or man-made chemical elements; it is in this place that the images supersede the explicit history of the Newtown Creek and allow us to reflect on and build new meaning of the places we exist in.

 

 

*See Newtown Creek I for more history of Newtown Creek