effigies, 2005

I wanted to make pictures of people without using real people. I felt that a photograph of an actual person is often dominated by the specifics of the individual's identity and appearance, I wanted something more universal. I settled on using effigies of various kinds, inspired by the cookie cutters that a friend had on display in her home. I found that the best objects were small and without too much detail. The prints were large, 1.2 by 1.5 metres, so they achieved a sculptural presence....
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I wanted to make pictures of people without using real people. I felt that a photograph of an actual person is often dominated by the specifics of the individual's identity and appearance, I wanted something more universal. I settled on using effigies of various kinds, inspired by the cookie cutters that a friend had on display in her home. I found that the best objects were small and without too much detail. The prints were large, 1.2 by 1.5 metres, so they achieved a sculptural presence. Exhibited at Matakana Pictures, Matakana in 2005 and at Momentum Gallery, Auckland in 2008. Note that the large size (1200 x1500mm) edition of 5 prints of Effigy Number Five has sold out.
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