Vincent Serbin

Our knowledge of the present moment is based on the coincidence of an event in the near past and an event in the near future. Likewise, our minds function by accessing our memories to make decisions about the future.

To express this idea I devised a diptych-like form which juxtapose two closely related negatives (records of events) in a single image; one frame is labeled “event A”, which refers to a moment in the near past and the other is labeled “event B”, which refers to a moment in the near future.

As suggested by Post-Modern theory, every event is a hybrid of the previous one and possesses unpredictable mutations, vague boundaries and complex overlapping elements of a cut and paste nature. To give visual shape to the Post-Modern condition, I developed a collage-like style of constructing images which I call the “negative collage”.

I photograph my subjects with a 4×5 camera and shoot traditional black and white film. I cut and tear my negative then fasten the pieces together with cellophane tape. I also distress the negatives in various ways by scratching, standing, writing upon and poking holes through the construction. The finished “negative collage” is then taped down to a clear sheet of 8×10 film. I then make silver gelatin prints directly from the original construction and tone the final in a unique manner.