Since
childhood I have been fascinated with stones, rocks, bricks, cliffs and caves. My special
love for texture is apparent throughout my work where it is integrated into the scenery
and the landscapes that I photograph and hand-color. Every place and every person has a
story to tell. It is easier to see the plot when one can avoid additional un-needed
information. By striping the color and than changing or re-arranging it, I can re-tell the
story any way I like.
As a
photographer, I document that story in a printed image. As an award winning hand-coloring
artist, I add poetry and music to the story. With the versatility of oils, pastels and
color pencils, I compose rhythm and variety; from transparent to opaque, or a combination
of both, to produce a luminous quality. I love color ... pure, unnatural, glowing color
... that I alter and pair up to make a medley of expression and emotion offering a new
view of music, color and life.
What began
with a much-loved family photograph of a small boy and his sister, hand-painted in Chicago
at the turn of the last century, has turned into a journey of discovery and passion for
the nostalgic appeal of overlaying color in layers, covering portions of an underlining
black and white photograph, enhancing but not changing the original print, creating moods
with hints of tint, ultra color or fully painted effects. The drama is added by removing
some color and letting the photograph peek through ..... tricking the eye and deceiving
the brain.
I paint on
black-and-white or toned photographs because I love the richness and depth that an image
can achieve only with the use of applied color. Combinations of photo oils, pencils, spot
pens and pastels allow me to layer colors that are not natural in an image, creating moods
and characteristics that are not confined by the limitations of color film. My photographs
are primary and simplistic in composition but graphic and bold in their color palette.
Most of my subjects are halves of themselves; complete only with the application of
selective color. Half of a window, a door, a pot, a bench, even a person can be whole when
colored to enhance and celebrate what can be seen rather than morn what cannot.
My husband and business
partner, Lucas Cichon, a professional photographer www.lucascichon.com
I am available for
commercial projects and commissioned portraiture.
