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Monday, August 23, 2010

Al Davalle

(This post appeared simultaneously on Aline Smithson's blog Lenscratch)

I first came across the work of Al Davalle on the Lenswork website. His ghostly, abstract black-and white-images caught my eye because they were like nothing I had ever seen before, and when I found out that they are images of wood dust frozen by strobe lights, I was intrigued. It turns out Al has been working with wood for over 25 years and he loves wood and loves trees and so was prodded to do a photo project about this passion by his friend, the amazing photographer and teacher Jeff Curto.

Over several months, Al said he shot hundreds of images of wood - of the furniture he was making, his woodworking tools, wood varnishes, and even the trees in the woods behind his house. None of these photographs stuck with him. But one day, while sitting in his woodshop, he saw the light hitting the wood dust floating through the air and he realized how beautiful it was and thought he'd try to capture it.

The results, a project he has named "A Universe Within," are mesmerizing.








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