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Artist Statement


Artists Huyghe and Tillmans made me realize that architecture isn’t just meant for aesthetic purposes. When taking time to observe architecture’s details, it also tells a story of its own. These dual purposes has helped me appreciate architecture not only through its visible beauty, but also through its underlying messages.


The reason why architecture matters to me is because of the way it seems to act as if it is living. Unlike literature, music and art, which are mostly conserved and remain the same, architecture is always surrounded by the turbulent forces of nature that surrounds it and cause that piece of architecture to change all the time. Specifically, as the lighting or color changes, it affects the way architecture appears and feels. In this way, architecture are like humans in that both of them never remain the same. This was my theme in my Photo Gallery, but the way which I've approached this project was an inspiration from a photo taken by Tillmans in his Book for Architects. That photo particularly had an impact on me because it showed the contrasting characteristics between two human figures. Although both figures were in the same body position, the components making up these figures were distinctly different. One was a creation of a metal robot, and the other was an actual human soldier, and to me, this photo seemed like a comparison between the real and created. In fact, one might ask, "Visually, they are unalike, but internally, how are they any different?" And this is a good question, considering how both a robot and soldier are told what to do, and must follow instructions from higher orders.


Similarly, my photos show the comparisons between the same or similar architectural works and spaces in terms of lighting (and also coloring, in certain aspects), and in this way, attempt to show how lighting can affect one’s perception of the photo. For example, the first 2 photos show different parts of the same apartment lit up in different ways. I took the first photo on the same floor level as the room in a straightforward view of the harshness and narrow focus of artificial light upon the wooden cabinets of the kitchen, which make certain parts of the kitchen very bright and very dark at the same time. The second photo, taken at a wider angle to show the scope of light reaching the whole room, shows natural light as being more mellow and spreading evenly to light up the whole dining room, which depicted the wooden tables, chairs, and floor. This sort of lighting gives equal focus to all objects inside the room.


Hopefully, the viewers will see and appreciate the various types of lighting upon different objects, and think about how it might affect the mood or aesthetic quality of the photo. Happy viewing!


DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.