One year ago, SBC psychology major Carrie Cann received her first camera. Now she builds her own.
Her progress in the field was accelerated by a Sweet Briar's Summer Honors Research Grant, an award traditionally reserved for students studying the sciences or humanities. After studying photography for a year, Cann '05 channeled her newly acquired knowledge and growing fascination with 19th-century techniques into a research project that combined both the art and science of photography.
"It was important for me to show the community that there is research and a lot of hard work that goes into the creation of art," she said. "Most people can't see that, but they can't be expected to without personal experience."
The results of her work - "Out of the Darkness," an intriguing array of evocative black and white prints - are on display in the Babcock Fine Arts Center lobby through Oct. 17. Cann will deliver a gallery talk followed by a reception on Friday, Sept. 10 from 4:30-6 p.m.
She wanted her project to stand on its own scientific and artistic merits without delving into the history of photography. Her first step in the project involved designing, constructing, and experimenting with pinhole cameras - cameras that rely on light from a pin-sized hole rather than a manufactured lens. Cann made several cameras out of wood and gator foam as well as various box-like objects including a suitcase, a television, and a psychology textbook. She settled upon a 4 inch by 5 inch Polaroid and a 120-film camera (see notes below) to create the photographs in her exhibition.
With her equipment ready, she then focused on the creative process. A soft, antiquated appearance is intrinsic to pinhole photographs and complements Cann's lucid artistic approach. She based her vision on dreams and the inner workings of the mind and soul - conjuring up a striking series of haunting, introspective images.
"My original intent was to photograph dreams," she said. "However, as I began the process, I realized that my images were specifically illustrating the dreams of a woman struggling to overcome depression."
Cann's goal was to illustrate the "shocking reality of depression" so that those suffering from it realize they're not alone, and to offer a glimpse of a sufferer's hidden turmoil to those who haven't experienced it.
In her artist's statement, Cann elaborated: "Through these photographs, I travel through the cycle [of depression] and conclude with a message of hope, that with help and determination people can overcome the debilitating effects of depression and learn to live with themselves."
Anne-Marie Walsh '06 contributed to this story.
About the cameras:
During her summer 2004 research project, Cann constructed five pinhole cameras. She experimented with different focal lengths and light-sensitive materials, finally settling upon her 4 inch x 5 inch Polaroid and a 120-film cameras to create the photographs in this exhibition. The Polaroid is made of wood and was modeled after one of Eric Renner's (founder of The Pinhole Resource and The Pinhole Journal) Leonardo Pinhole cameras. She changed the focal length of the Leonardo camera to a normal focal length to better suit her aesthetic needs and chosen subjects. This was the first camera she built and it took her about two weeks to perfect it. She began with a gator foam prototype and completed the final camera using scrap wood donated and cut by Pat and Mike of Hill Hardware in Amherst, Va. The 120-film camera was the most difficult camera to build, as it requires a spool and winding mechanism that can be kept light-tight. The final camera is made from gator foam and is wide-angled. Heath Wilkerson of Amherst Body Shop assisted with designing and welding the spool mechanism. The other three cameras are made from a suitcase, a television, and a psychology textbook and all must be contact printed. The suitcase camera uses 11 inch x 14 inch paper negatives. The TV has a curved film plane made of gator foam and a printmaking plate, painted flat black. She uses 120 film in three horizontal rows, which creates one image on three sheets of film. The textbook uses photosensitive paper and creates a super wide-angle image. The text pages were removed and replaced with gator foam edges. Cann considers this camera a tribute to her education in psychology.
