Fourth-year printmaking and photography student Danny Cirne opens his first photography exhibition, Neo-Spaces, offering a glimpse into domestic landscapes that have been transformed through the use of tinted light bulbs.
Inspired by Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn and his specific lighting palettes, the exhibit displays photos that seem to be digitally recoloured. Except Cirne did not alter any of the photos.
“The colours that you see in these images are from the action of switching out regular fixtures with a tinted variation and then documenting that action through timed exposures,” says Cirne. “All colour is coming from the light source. There is absolutely no manipulation in post-production of the intensity to colours nor the appearance of such colours.”
The photographs present the private and intimate locations of a home, subjects, and locations that are not typically documented nor visually interesting.
Originally a printmaking student, Cirne only began to experiment with photography as a medium last year.
“It was actually through print media and using photographs though more
print-related processes that photography found itself in my work. Neo-Spaces essentially has been the first time I’ve used photography as its own medium,” says Cirne.
With the support and assistance of professors, students, and alumni at the visual arts department, Cirne bought a DSLR and began to utilize photography as a part of his studies.
Originally Cirne strived to present a domestic environment in very vivid, almost obnoxious colours. After realizing his photographs in print, Cirne says his plan came to fruition, particularly in the emotional impact that the colour changes bring. Colour palettes can have an impact on a person’s perception, although the science of colour psychology is still being researched. The notion that specific colours can alter moods and behaviours is often used in marketing, branding, filmmaking, and especially photography.
Neo-Spaces is part of an ongoing solo photography exhibition held at the Special Projects Gallery in the Joan and Martin Goldfarb Centre for Fine Arts on the Keele Campus. The exhibit is free and open until October 2.
Victoria Goldberg, Arts Editor
Featured and in text images courtesy of Danny Cirne
