Doug Prince
By Robert R. Craven
Excerpt from: "Treading the Brink: The Photographic Blends of Doug Prince" Seeing only one sight at a time, we must make connections to give what we see meaning in context. Everything reminds us of something else, and itÕs in that connection between what we see now and what we saw then that meanings arise. In dreams, we sometimes compound times and places, combining memories that in waking hours remain distinct. Such connections, and the mysterious, evanescent meanings they create, are at the heart of Doug PrinceÕs blended photographs. From his black­and­white archives, Prince selects pairs of images that connect Ñ visually, poetically, and psychologically, following their own inexplicable, organic logic. Blended with great craft into a single print, they are readily perceived as direct photographs of things that could but probably did not happen. Thus two or more images, each carrying meaning for the artist (and, by virtue of his artistry for the viewer as well) become one. The blend signifies far more than the sum of its parts, for in addition to the visual and other meanings of each constituent, we are struck by the immediacy and vitality of the implied comparisons and contrasts Ñ we witness, and participate in, the moment of meaning. Moreover, we have the luxury of contemplation, for unlike the momentary connections among everyday perceptions, these images, with their richly ambiguous relationships, resonate in time. An exaggerated perspective thrusts the foreground image toward the picture plane while drawing the viewers attention back into the contextual field. Somewhere in between is the blend Ñ metaphorically an invisible passage between times and places. Like the brink between what we see and the meaning of what we see, it defies definition yet invites discovery. The perspective is powerful, both visually and in its poetic connection to the depths of time and consequent implications of birth, growth, death, and decay. The subjects too Ñ children, broken monuments, moments of atmospheric revelation Ñ are pointedly temporal. The results are compelling.
Images