Honorable Mention in the category « Alternative / Experimental »

Of Salts and Inks

A vague title, yet nothing to do with sailors. You won't see dockworkers or vast blue horizons. Instead, you'll find symmetries, body parts, and tattoos.

Through this work, I would first like the viewer to look at these bodies differently, to see each part as a form, a balance, a contrast, or even a curiosity. This interaction between the viewer and the composition will, I hope, help to desexualize our minds. Indeed, we too often look at bodies with an intention that is not in tune with the moment.

Secondly, I would like to understand the relationship each person has with tattoos. Is it aesthetic, therapeutic, spiritual? Symmetrical choices also interest me because they reflect an aspect of the person. For my part, I wanted to work on this theme because it reflects a lot of my personality. I like things well-balanced, straight, and tidy, with the smallest on top of the largest, the ends of the sheets neatly joined, and so on.

Finally, why "Of Salts"? In this work, using analog photography, it was the silver salts that were exposed, sometimes even double or triple exposed. Once the film is marked by the light, there's no going back, like pigmented tattoos on the skin. This is where the complexity of this project becomes apparent, as it requires great concentration and mental projection of the forms to achieve these results.