Kate Atkins

What is your senior thesis?

It’s still a struggle trying to articulate what I am doing- right now I am mostly focused on aesthetics rather than concept. Here’s the current artist statement, subject to change, transform, adapt, and become more solid:

To the centre of the city where all roads meet waiting for you...
To the centre of the city in the night, waiting for you...
-Joy Division, Shadowplay

Shadows render light. Ambience becomes
of the desolate street lit only by
a solitary streetlight. The city does
not sleep, it breathes. Echoes become
silence, the empty streets deny human
existence; for the hours to come.

The lurker, wanderer, drifter has
eyes on the prowl while
embracing the light that passes
through darkness.

In the shadows, I wait...
still.

What motivated you to start this project? What inspires your creative process?

Ever since I had a night photography assignment sophomore year, I have always had an urge to return to it. First I start with a location in mind, sometimes with ideas of images I would like to capture, but mostly I rely on “educated” wandering and lurking about. I think I have exhausted Boston as it has become so familiar, but there are always surprises.

Do you work in film or digital? Please describe any technique or process relevant to your project.

I choose to shoot in black and white- 35 mm for the grain and grit, in the traditional darkroom fashion. I will also use selenium to tone the prints.

Is this a new project or a continuation of previous work?

At its essence this project has the same feel I hope to capture within photography which involves atmospheres or moods. I have always been drawn to desolation when photographing, and its something I can’t really explain why.

How has your work developed or changed over time?

The eye always changes, being drawn to different aspects of a frame to make a composition. I perceive and manipulate the subject at hand a lot more thoughtfully, even when I shoot 35 mm.

What artists or works of art have inspired or influenced you?

In terms of my current work, my major influence is Brassai. A lot of my inspirations are not related directly to night photography. Film is a great inspiration; the beauty and fragility of light playing into metaphors in Ingmar Bergman movies- his cinematography is unrivaled.

What kind of response do you hope to get from your viewers? Is there a certain experience you want people to take away from your photographs?

The work is apolitical and without a real social context, I’m not forcing an idea or concept on the viewer. It is more an appreciation of beauty, being a pictorial photographer, a collector of alleyways, shadows and light. I want the viewer to sense the eeriness and be rattled by the strong contrast of the prints.

What is the ideal setting to view your work? Do you picture your photographs in a book? In a gallery?

I like the intimate qualities of a book, and I think that would be the most suitable for the work rather than being displayed on a wall. I would like the work to be held and dog-eared at the corners.

Do you have any ideas or plans for future work?

I intend to continue shooting and let the projects fall where they may. Maybe the project is just to continue. I’m actually having a rough time creating at present. I’m going to push myself next semester and try to delve into the human aspects of nightlife or photograph subcultures as well as shoot in color. I’ve been looking at a lot of more portraiture based work like that of Anton Corbijn and Glen E. Friedman; of course seeing that Bruce Davidson exhibit really provoked me. A couple of other ideas have come about in my head; it would be interesting to capture activists/anarchists/radicals/thinkers/philosophers, etc and interview them about the struggle between living within the system and living out/fighting for ideals. I hope logistically I can pull it off; it’ll require some research and networking (Noam Chomsky is a professor at MIT!). Ever since I held a camera, my work has been quiet, but I am ready to show that I am loud and start putting myself out there as an artist.

What do you see yourself doing after graduation?

The real world will strike, unfortunately. Hopefully, I will be able to find work with the recession. I don't intend on going to graduate school, but I really have been thinking about getting into the field of art therapy. I really just want to create and be around those that are also compelled to do so in whatever medium at this point in my life. Highest priority is to move away to cities conducive to creativity- places like Asheville, NC, Portland, OR, Montreal, QC and Athens, GA are ideal locations to relocate, but NYC is always exciting. I don’t know where I’ll end up.