Transformations

Tom Bartlett
September 12 – October 31, 2009

September 12 – October 31, 2009

Transformations

Tom Bartlett

Solo exhibition

Opening and Reception

Saturday, September 12 at 8:00 pm

Influenced by Lszl Moholy-Nagys ideas that photographic means are pliable materials in which to discover or create new forms (as in

photograms for instance  where objects are placed directly on photo print paper and exposed to light), Bartletts exploration into abstract

photography officially started back in the early 1990s involving a mechanical modification to a camera. Taking an old medium-format film

camera that accepts 120 film, he modified it so that the negative roll could be fed continuously across the film plane while the shutter was

held open. The film was first cranked through by hand and later, a small battery-powered drill was mounted to the takeup reel so the film

could move smoothly and continuously across the film plane and reduce unwanted motion caused by hand cranking. This resulted in a

typical 20 exposure roll of 120 film being turned into one continuously long negative about 35 inches long. (He remarked that they look

reminiscent of 20th century music scores.) Bartlett did several time pans where, with the shutter open, the camera was moved while the negative was advanced continuously at the same time. In other pans, subjects moved relative to the cameras motion while the negative was advancing at the same time. Several pans were done until the cameras take up reel ground down to a halt.

-Keith Soehn