Transforming ordinary into extraordinary
‘‘I make these images to make people aware of everyday nature, that it's not just a destination, it's all around us.’’
Transforming something as simple as a pile of dirt into a beautiful landscape was a captivating idea for Conor Clarke.
Clarke, from Clarks Beach, lives in Berlin. It was there that she came up with the concept of photographing ‘‘everyday nature’’ because she lacked funds to travel, and wanted to inspire others to see beauty in their everyday lives.
Her work is now being featured at the Franklin Arts Centre, as a joint exhibition with fellow artist, Tia Huia Ranginui, called Sorry, not sorry, until April 7.
‘‘I make these images to make people aware of everyday nature, that it’s not just a destination, it’s all around us,’’ Clarke said.
‘‘I had no money at the time and I thought ‘what the hell am I going to make work about?’
‘‘You always think you have to travel to take pictures.
‘‘I was looking for things that felt exotic and that felt epic in my neighbourhood.’’
She started seeing piles of gravel, sand and dirt as beautiful landscapes and photographed them.
They are all in black and white, which she said helps trick the mind into seeing them as mountainous landscapes.
‘‘If you isolate a pile of sand after the rain, it feels like it could be in the alps or something. (But) I see them for what they are, which is just a really cool pile of sand.’’
She wants people to question the idea of beauty, as well as noticing the beauty around them.
‘‘I want people to look at them and appreciate these piles of dirt in a new light.’’