In May 2022, I traveled to Rome for a two-week artist residency at the American Academy of Rome. My artistic intentions were twofold; I would bring a suitcase full of painting gear (paints, brushes, etc.), as well as a second, entirely different project involving photography.
In the weeks prior to my departure I had become interested in a very small device that printed Polaroid-style photos from an iPhone. Through my primary intention was to continue painting, I also wanted to experiment with photos printed from this new little gadget. As my departure date approached I started to feel unwell. I had had a few colds or flus during the COVID-19 pandemic, but I had actually never gotten COVID. This time I felt much worse and as I got on the plane I was coughing like a madman and thinking I’m sure I’m positive this time.
I landed in Rome on May 16th and went directly to the Academy where they were conducting COVID testing that afternoon. I was totally exhausted from a night of relentless coughing and very little sleep. Upon arrival I went directly to the apartment and passed out cold. I slept through the 4pm campus tour and weekly COVID testing. The next day, I tested positive with a home test. I officially had COVID-19 and I made the academy aware of my condition. I was then tested again by the campus doctor and began my quarantine in a large apartment with large windows and endless views of the Academy’s verdant campus.
During the first days of the quarantine I was very ill and had minimal interest in anything but sleeping. Somewhere around day four I started to wonder how I could salvage my residency and wondered if there was another way to creatively make use of my time while basically locked in an apartment for the next ten days. I opened up my suitcase and went directly for the small color printer. With curiosity but minimal energy I began to use my iPhone to photograph objects around the apartment. Slowly but surely I began to get excited about the interesting and abstract images I was capturing by shooting everyday objects I found around the apartment, from doorknobs and toasters to apples and toilet seat covers. I had found a narrative, a theme, something that excited me and made sense creatively. Something I was able to accomplish with the meagre energy I had.
Over the course of the next 10 days I captured more than 100 interesting abstract images of household objects within the apartment and began to see a real body of work coming together. On the very last day I was allowed out of quarantine and was able to capture some images around the Academy campus. The images, shown here in my studio, form the basis and potential jumping off point for new ideas and inspirations.
All images were captured on an iPhone 12 Pro. No filters. No photoshop or digital manipulation has been used. Images were printed directly from the standard iPhone photo app to the Canon mini color printer.
