Tanya Lewis

Artist Statement

A position behind the lens of a camera that eludes the customary is where I yearn to be. I possess the ability to express myself through photography, constructing images that enable me to communicate visually. Self-expression conveys through my documentation of our environment and the natural beauty that defines it. Within the realm of nature I discover my solitude, serenity, ultimately establishing my sanctuary.

My thematic focus resorts to combined imagery and the objective of fusing processes. Creating a harmonic pastiche of portrait and nature both in color and in the timeless black and white medium challenges the truthfulness of the image, a conflict of manipulation and deception dating back to the onset of the art of photography. Simplistic portraiture and landscape documentation are transformed from complimentary analogous images into a balanced composition of unification. The basics (form, tone, composition) along with creativity and dedication evolve into fine art.

My photographic preference derives from inspirational photographers, such as Ansel Adams, Dorothea Lang, and Walker Evans. Additionally, the documentary and fine art photographer Cheryl Nemazie provided me with the motivation to travel abroad, capturing the variations in culture and diversity through photojournalism. My most ultimate objectives involve utilizing my photographic skill set to inspire change through humanitarianism and forensics, both of which pivot on the unpretentiousness of factual documentation and at the same time are polar opposites. I have yet to define my niche, and in some aspects I don't believe I ever want to. My interests and inspirations continue to be altered and all the while, I persistently flourish as I choose the road less taken.

B.F.A Photography