Sun II, Transfer I and Transfer IV (2010-11)

Sun II  (2011)

Transfer I  (2010-11)

Transfer IV  (2010-11)

Andrew Beck

Lower Ground, Johnsonville Library

These three early works by Andrew Beck are contact prints, small photographs where the printed image is the same size as the film negative rather than being enlarged during the printing process. Beck’s practice has continued from this point to explore various ways photographs can be made and manipulated, even without use of a camera. Instead, frames and props are used to create photograms of light and shadow.

These semi-abstract images were taken at the abandoned and crumbling Wellington Fever Hospital before it’s redevelopment into the Wellington SPCA. Its isolation on the bush-clad slopes of Mount Victoria had long made it an attractive place for daredevils willing to check out its haunted reputation. At the same time these images were taken, the local paranormal society made several visits, attempting to experience evidence of the unnatural such as mystery lights and moving shadows.

About the artist

Andrew Beck (b. 1987, Tauranga) describes his work as multidisciplinary, with photography the driver of his practice. Recent works consist of site-specific installations, yet they almost always incorporate photography, specifically the photogram. Beck’s primary considerations include the key elements of photography: light, shadow, surface, reflection, and the fixing of these elements in time. Beck received a Masters in Photography from Massey University, Wellington in 2010. Since then he has developed a strong exhibition history having had solo shows in Wellington, New Plymouth, Berlin, Paris and Cologne and participated in numerous group shows both in New Zealand and overseas.