severe clear, 2014/2019 — H Spencer Young

Severe Clear, 2014/2019

Photograph
Chromogenic print on dibond
Maple frame, museum glass (artist framing)
43h x 63w x 2d in. (109.22h x 160.02w x 5.08d cm.)
Ed: 4 + 2AP

“Severe Clear” is an aviation term used to describe flying conditions so clear as to be almost too much for the brain to take. It refers to skies so purely blue that you feel like you can see to infinity.
The image is comprised of shapes meeting in such a way as to suggest a horizon. Historically there has been discussion about why gazing out at the open sea reduces anxiety and the answer is that viewing a vast horizon gives one a clear view of any incoming threats, and time to prepare if needed.
While viewing the work and gazing into the vast sea/skycape, an experience of depth on a flat plane, one may not necessarily realize that this image was gesturally “drawn” into the camera with a focused beam of light.
In the tradition of questioning what constitutes a photograph, and what constitutes a camera, “Severe Clear” is a trompe-l’oeil digital luminogram created with a single gesture of colored light onto an exposed, lensless sensor. A luminogram is a ‘photograph’ created with nothing other than light and a recording medium.

This work was exhibited at Harlan Levey Projects (Brussels, BE) and District Gallery (Cleveland, OH).

H SPENCER YOUNG