honorable mention
Patty Maher
title
The Infinite Universe
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entry description
Throughout her work, Yayoi Kusama uses polka dots as a metaphor for giving up personal identity and becoming one with the universe. "Far beyond the reaches of the universe," she says, "infinity is trying to communicate with us” and it reaches out through her work as an infinite series of polka dots. This composite photography series is an conceptual exploration of the themes that run throughout Kusama’s work. In this series, female figures are clothed, covered or somehow encased in polka dots. In each photo the identity of the figure is intentionally obscured, blocked or moved out of frame while the motif of polka dots gives indication of the larger forces at play within these micro universes. This series explores the idea that our human identity is both intertwined and intrinsically linked to a cosmological identity and that we, as mere dots in the universe, are a very small part of a much larger entity that exists concurrently within and outside of us.about the photographer
Patty Maher is an internationally recognized, award winning fine art and conceptual photographer based in Caledon, Ontario. The inspiration for her photography comes from an exploration of storytelling in both natural and urban settings. Working primarily through staged self-portraiture and portraiture Patty is widely known for hiding or obscuring the faces of her subjects using only posture, gesture, symbol and colour to convey emotion. Her photography disrupts the boundaries between real life and the otherworldly, the surreal and the fantastic, and envision the world in a transformative light. In telling these stories she invites the viewer to become a co-creator in meaning, leaving the stories open ended but touching on basic and universal emotions.back to gallery