Roberta Allen

RELATIVE TRUTHS 

 

I see the world as a place of shifting relations. In this  sepia image/text collage series, I present my own perceptual scheme which plays with ambiguities that arise when similar objects are repeatedly photo-graphed from different angles and distances. It is often impossible to distinguish one object from another in the photographs.

 

I chose familiar objects or simple geometric forms. I photographed them singly or in random groupings, never allowing the total number of objects to appear in a single photo. The resulting images are randomly arranged, often within a grid--which suggests order. The images are defined by handwritten texts that thwart the viewer's expectations. The captions refer to the number of objects photographed rather than the number of objects presented. The texts may also refer to qualities, such as size which is relative and color which is unverifiable.  

 

From a  large series of sepia photo collages with ink on museum board.