Art Statement Helen Ellis
From my earlier focus on rural life and indigenous cultures, my work has turned to landscape. Traveling within landscape is a meditative journey. I like to go alone, and explore the roads that move away from the beaten path. I find myself drawn to moments in time when light reveals the tranquility in majestic landscapes, the transparency of a woodland in early morning mist, the stark shapes of a burned forest, and the place of humanity as a part of landscape, sometimes diminutive within it, but always balanced and comfortable within a bigger picture.
I print in small size, centering the photograph on 8X10 silver semi-matt paper. The small prints invite the viewer to move close to the image, examine the details, and experience the world intimately.
All of my work is shot with Nikon F3, and Leica M6 cameras, 35mm Tri-X black and white film, and developed by hand in small reel tanks.