Nature and craft

Big things from a short distance

A horse’s mane catches the light. Beneath a mushroom cap, pale gills form a whole pattern. A wooden face holds the marks of a chisel. I like coming close enough for those details to take over a photograph. The size of a subject says little about the strength of an image.

Lower, closer, more carefully

In these frames I am most interested in light on a surface. Sometimes it is a thin line on fur; sometimes it reveals the structure beneath a cap. The closer I look, the more room a detail takes up in the photograph.

A piebald horse faces the camera at pasture in Brzegi Dolne. The low sun lights its mane and tail. — A quiet gazeBrzegi Dolne, Poland

A red fly agaric with pale spots on the forest floor. — Red capMoczary, Ustrzyki Dolne municipality, Poland

Pale gills beneath the red cap of a fly agaric. — Beneath the capMoczary, Ustrzyki Dolne municipality, Poland

Material has character, too

When I photograph BiesCzadowa Kraina, I look at the figures as portrait subjects. Gesture, expression and the direction of light matter. I keep welds and cuts visible. They let us see the work of someone’s hands.

A portrait of a metal figure wearing a helmet, with horns, long ears and a cigar. — Character in steelBiesCzadowa Kraina, Ustrzyki Dolne, Poland

An antlered metal figure with an open mouth against a pale sky. — A cry in metalBiesCzadowa Kraina, Ustrzyki Dolne, Poland

A white mug inside a large sculpture of rusting steel. — Small object, large formBiesCzadowa Kraina, Ustrzyki Dolne, Poland

A wooden heart with visible grain and a cord against stone. — Grain of a heartBiesCzadowa Kraina, Ustrzyki Dolne, Poland

A carved portrait

With small figures, light reveals everything quickly: the edge of an ear, the pattern of clothing, the curve of a smile. I want to show them so you can almost feel the wood beneath your fingers.

A wooden figure in a hat, with a raised hand and carved smile, in warm light. — A smile in woodBiesCzadowa Kraina, Ustrzyki Dolne, Poland

A wooden figure in a cap and checked shirt, with a small dog at his feet. — A Czad and his companionBiesCzadowa Kraina, Ustrzyki Dolne, Poland

A carved wooden figure holding a long object diagonally, in sidelight. — Wood and gestureBiesCzadowa Kraina, Ustrzyki Dolne, Poland