In Clara DeWeese’s photographs of her loved ones, the world becomes a stage where fatigue, awkwardness, and affection coexist.
The viewer witnesses without trespassing, the choreography of life unfolding: the uncertain freedom of young adulthood, the joy and exhaustion of child-rearing, the exhilaration of new love, and the pain of watching beloved elders age. The images are built on trust.
They are permissions of mutual recognition and reverence, with friends, family, and partners performing the rituals of daily life without the masks of strength that public interaction demands.
Using the technique of transferring laser printed images onto wood panels, she layers, sands, fragments, deconstructs and reconstructs the image into something new. It pulls the photograph further away from the click, into a worked through emotional record. Piecing together images of her dear ones in this process, mimic the care, love and time that goes into the maintenance of her relationships.