Zelda Zinn

Irresistible Air

2012 - 2013
This series marks another chapter in my continuing exploration of materials, and the grey area between abstraction and representation. Here, I have manipulated plastic air pillows into ephemeral sculptural forms. They are taken into the studio, carefully lit, and then recorded with my camera. I utilize the language of traditional fine art photography: isolation of form, sharpness, rendition of surface and shape, tonal range, reflectance and transmission of light. Using post-consumer materials shines a light on what we trash, and what we value.

I am interested in engaging in a dialogue with these pictures; my goal is to entice the viewer to consider how they might go beyond what the photo is “of” to contemplate what it might mean, capitalizing on the human penchant to seek out and identify shapes and forms, and to assign significance. These simple, disposable materials function as a screen onto which we project our own ideas, or simply appreciate the visual pleasures of light and physics.