Natalie Christensen – Open Door

$2,200

SKU: 24584

Artwork Description

Natalie Christensen – Open Door

Dimensions: 26 x 18″ framed / 24 x 16″ unframed
Year: 2017
Medium: archival pigment print on Italian cotton rag, satin UV laminate, white shadow box frame
Edition: 2/6

ALSO AVAILABLE
14 x 10″ framed, edition 1/8, $1090
50 x 34″ framed, edition 1/4, $4400

THE DECONSTRUCTED SELF SERIES

In 2014 I moved from the state of Kentucky to New Mexico leaving my lifelong home and my 25-year career as a psychotherapist behind. While it was an exciting moment it was also a time of questioning and reflection.

Like many artists who have come to New Mexico, I was immediately drawn to the distinctive Southwestern light. The beauty of the natural environment is evident to most people; however, my interest was to explore the more banal peripheral landscapes that often go unnoticed by the casual observer. I began by photographing color fields and geometric shapes. I was interested in the way light and shadow could spark complex narratives, and I quickly became aware that these isolated moments in the suburban landscape were rich with metaphor. Closed and open doors, empty parking lots and forgotten swimming pools drew me to a scene; yet it was my reactions to these objects and spaces that elicited interpretation and projection.

As a psychotherapist, I learned the art of asking the question – in many ways these photographs are an extension of that work. The symbols and spaces in my images are an invitation to explore a rich world that is concealed from consciousness. And the scenes are an enticement to contemplate narratives that have no remarkable life or history yet tap into something deeply familiar to our experience; often disturbing, sometimes amusing…unquestionably present.