Matthew Kraus
I am a photographer and bookmaker. I shoot mainly medium and large format film
because film creates images with a warmth that a digital sensor is incapable of recreating.
Alongside film photography, I use technology and alternative practices to create surrealist
imagery that plays with one's emotions and memories. An example is using a process
known as Trichromatic Photography. Images are shot on Black-and-White film with red,
green, and blue filters over each frame. They are then thrown in Photoshop as separate
channels, creating a full-color image. Through this process, ghosts of people and things are
created. I believe the physicality of film is crucial in our contemporary society, where
capitalism makes it difficult for objects to last a long time and be owned by individuals.
Products are meant to be used then thrown away, and you’re expected to keep buying.
My work explores the concept of human intervention in the world. I examine ideas
of how manmade spaces convey emotion through abandonment and decoration. Spaces
that feel like they’re trapped in time. Looking at these spaces reminds you of your
childhood and brings you some comfort. Even if these manmade spaces don’t look
appealing, something inside brings you back to a different place. Accompanying my interest
in built space is my interest in environmental conservation and the natural world. My work
explores how human presence is shown through acts of littering, which obscures and taints
the natural landscape. My more recent work explores grief through the loss of my mother
and the effects of this loss.
© Matthew Kraus 2027
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