To Bear Mute Witness

To Bear Mute Witness, an experimental ongoing analogue portraiture series that asks how the physical and chemical influence the traces we leave behind.

To Bear Mute Witness is an experimental analogue photographic series that analyzes the meaning of what a portrait represents beyond the visible, as a site unseen. Historically, portraiture has represented both physical likeness and expressions of identity. In this series, the subjects are asked to consent to both the photographic process as well as a urine sample. This bodily fluid, unique to each individual and their lifestyle, is then added to the development tank, prior to processing for up to eight weeks. 

Eight weeks reflects the threshold of organogenesis in human embryo development, the creation of the base structure of each sitter. The reaction between biological materials and silver halide crystals of the photographic emulsion produces unique distortions, transforming each portrait into both likeness and biological imprint. Each negative is shaped by the sitter’s body chemistry. The distortions of the self reflect the individual aspects, normally invisible, to become present that shape the physical presence. 

Looking at the traces left behind, To Bear Mute Witness engages with the tensions between intimacy and distance, visibility and the self. Each portrait is an intimate collaboration between sitter, photographer, body and chemical.