Daniel Morris is most known for his distinct style of portrait photography . He considers his subject in terms of the elements of art — line , color , shape , form , pattern , texture — organizing them into a unifi ed composition while at the same time discovering and revealing the subject as metaphor . His process is profoundly personal and honoring . Morris explains , “ I study my subject . In a sense , I am listening with my eyes and perception . If I give it time and trial , eventually the subject ‘ tells me ’ what it wants revealed .”
The people who have been the subjects in Morris ’ portraiture describe the experience more like photographic warm-ups and fundamentals hit by a spark of “ intuitive inspiration .” Once Morris “ hears ” that direction from his subject of where to take the composition , the process is decisive , deliberate , and everyone in the room follows with faith
Orlando Arts & Culture , v . 2.3 towards some mysterious end . He might have an idea of where to start , but even he admits that the subject is the wild card and has a will of its own , insisting representation . Morris fi nds it and collaborates with it for a truly surprising and fresh perspective .
Morris began working with drag queens in the early 2000s , fi rst for favor , then for hire , and eventually expanding the work into a series of documentary-style snapshots . It was the intense effort , craft , and dedication he saw in his early drag queen clients that turned his lens towards the process of drag . He explained how profound it was to witness the degree of courage and equal degree of vulnerability inherent in the process .
With the stigma that is attached to drag — by those who deny its creative merits , dismissing it as merely some kinky lifestyle choice which
they oppose ; and at the other end of the spectrum , the adulation often given by those who appreciate it — drag is a hornet ’ s nest of cultural attitudes and beliefs , a tangle of identity politics , and an art form with a challenging creative process . Morris was inspired to pull away the fray , isolate the parts from the politics , show slivers of raw process , and convey that common creative impulse that is a birthright of all humanity , resulting in a still-life in a moment void of judgement .
The opening reception for Morris ’ Transformation Series is on April 15 , 6-9pm as part of Art is a Drag at Park Avenue Photography , 200 S . Park Ave , Sanford , FL 32771 . Admission is free .
You can see more at : PicturesOnPark . com
ArtisaDrag . com
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