Lynné Bowman Cravens, Ross Faircloth, and Ashley Whitt
The Hawn Gallery - Hamon Arts Library - SMU, Dallas, TX
March 22 - May 19, 2019
The Illusion of Being is a three-person exhibition of photographic works by DFW based artists Lynné Bowman Cravens, Ross Faircloth, and Ashley Whitt. Each artist utilizes lens-based media to investigate notions of reality as perceived by the self.
Segmenting and focusing on different body parts, Lynné Bowman Cravens creates abstract origami sculptures, which show a multiplicity present in our physical forms, and a disconnect with our mental selves. Through the use of mirrors, she invites the viewer to perceive themselves within layers of constructed compositions, enabling a reflection on where one begins and the other ends.
Utilizing a Sony PS4 and the game, Grand Theft Auto V, Ross Faircloth submerges himself into the uncanny valley of Los Santos. These images are captured in a documentary style throughout the large ‘sandbox’ style gameplay with the characters’ phone cameras. The images are printed with archival methods in the darkroom to add permanence to an image originating from what is normally an impermanent medium.
Ashley Whitt explores the inability to escape certain memories or thoughts in one’s mind. Through self-portrait, still life photographs, and GIFs, Whitt seeks to subvert the viewer’s perception of reality and the rational. These images and moving stills aim to rationalize the irrational and complicate the viewer’s perception. The images invite the viewer to become immersed in an optical illusion, possibly serving as metaphors for everyday experience.