Nolan Preece, Untitled

Written by NEHMA's Intern Emma Crumbley

November 28, 2014

Nolan Preece is a Salt Lake City based artist who focuses on various experimental and alternative photographic processes. In this untitled work, Preece’s manipulation of the “chemigram” demonstrates the significance of often overlooked darkroom processes. The chemigram, invented in 1956 by the Belgian artist Pierre Cordier, consists of painting chemicals (most commonly fixer or developer) onto light sensitive photo paper, creating an image somewhere between a photograph and a painting. Preece has created his own adaptation of the chemigram, using acrylics rather than chemicals, to paint the light sensitive paper.

In this piece, Preece has used traditional photographic methods to create the leaves in the lower half of the picture, and his own chemographic process to create the watercolor-like painting in the upper half. The juxtaposition of the actual photographic image with the powerful, dreamlike chemigram creates a harsh contrast, where the photograph provides depth and reality, and the chemigram an otherworldly ethereal feeling. In terms of understanding the complexity of such pieces, Preece writes, 'The images are more accurately felt than observed.'