Found and Ground

Introduction

Found and Ground

Laurie Morrison

This exhibition reflects an interest I have in early photographic processes. In the early years of photography it was a common practice to hand paint black and white prints. There are many examples of hand-tinted photos and souvenir postcards in my family’s old photo albums. I have long been fascinated by these images, wondering about the decisions that were made about the colours used and which parts of the image were left untouched. I was fascinated by the way the addition of colour changed an image. The large image in this exhibition, Forged from the Earth, marked my first foray into bringing this sense of fascination into my own art practice. I began this exploration by using pigments I made from found natural materials in order to add colour to monochrome images. 

The work in this exhibition is experimental in nature and reflects a sense of “trial and error” that is inherent in experimental work. The results are often unpredictable and often lead to happy accidents. The photographic work in Found and Ground incorporates organic materials from my garden or foraged from the surrounding landscape. I planted my garden this year with eco-photographic experimentation in mind. I planted beets, mint, and Brussels sprouts that I used in different processes in image making. I also tended to and nurtured pokeberry, a plant more commonly thought of as a weed, as the berries of this plant can be turned into a rich, vibrant pigment.

I used pigments derived from these natural sources to augment photographs I took of the Niagara region, a region that holds deep and complex ideas of “home” and “belonging” for me. The photographs were taken using an analogue camera and developed using sustainable photographic developers made with such materials as mint and coffee. I chose to frame the smaller images in this exhibition with vintage frames acquired through thrift and antique stores as reusing material in this way felt like a natural extension of my concern for the environmental impact of art-making. 

The photographs in this exhibition are the result of a lengthy multi-step process. This work forced me to slow down and develop a deep sense of noticing that brought me closer to not only to the subjects of the images but also to the very materials they are dependent upon, the very rocks and plants used in the making of the image. The pigments I made foster a deeper connection to place as the organic material used was often gathered from the very site where the photo was taken.

This exhibition also includes a display of community artwork created during ‘Photodynamic Gardening’, a workshop in plant-based photography led by Visual Arts 2023 Walker Cultural Leader Trudi Lynn Smith.