James Montague: Emanation

My work is heavily influenced by how I feel about music – in particular what is commonly labeled “jazz”.  Continuing with the music analogy, I don’t want to listen albums where every piece has the same tempo, rhythm, feel, volume, or length.  I want to be surprised by every track.  To quote the late, great saxophonist Wayne Shorter: 

“For me, the word ‘jazz’ means, ‘I dare you.’  To break out of something is worth more than getting an A in syncopation.”    

I accept Wayne’s challenge and apply it to my photography – endeavor to create images that are other than ordinary.  To this end, while some of my work fits classical themes such as landscape, street, still life, etc., a significant amount of my current work, including the imagery presented here, focuses more on basic visual elements … point, line, area, form, texture, positive and negative space … rather than on an immediately recognizable object.  “Emanation of the objective from the concealed, or subjective – passing from the abstract into the concrete….” H.P. Blavatsky, Isis Unveiled.

All of my work is captured on black and white film, developed and printed in a traditional darkroom.   The only tools I use for creation of each final print are light, time and chemicals.   My use of scanners and Photoshop is limited to the digitization of work for my website and responding to calls for entry.