Paris Streets - Perceptions

In my Paris photos, I examine the environment of the urban pedestrian, this time from the vantage point of feeling lost and lonely. Seeking shelter from rain in the maze of Parisian streets, glancing through shop-windows, and strolling past the ever present city graffiti, one can however find solace in the quiet splendor of transient colour and the presence of everyday qualities.

The work is of relevance to the anxiety experienced worldwide with recession, the loss of income, and the uncertainty of what the future holds. I explore these by capturing layered images of window models: some dressed, some half stripped and some naked in shop windows.

I visually play with the vanishing of material “soldes” that refers to the end of a season, but becomes symbolic of our psychological state. Certain retail windows we associate with elegance and wealth are now covered with white paper that evokes a feeling loss, of bodies covered up or bared naked.

I attempt to balance the ominous feeling of the work by capturing the fleeting beauty: flashes of potent, brilliant bright color, caught as if by chance, reflected in wet surfaces, glass panels, and evocative street art, reminding me of my own rush of optimism and enjoyment as I experienced these scenes if only for a brisk moment.