When The Concept Is Bigger Than The Craft

It seems that I've been waiting forever for my portable dark box to arrive (here in Germany). It was shipped on February 5, 2008 from Rochester, New York. You wouldn't think it would take a month, but then again one of the biggest and most annoying things about living here is the APO system and the expense of commercial post (like FedEx and DHL). It's outrageous on both ends.

Quinn's darkbox

In hindsight, it's actually been a very good thing. I've been able to gather my thoughts about my approach to working through my Kristallnacht project. At first, I thought I would approach it a stand alone, no interference, straight forward (almost documentary) project.  I simply wanted to photograph the locations I have pre-selected and making 8x10 Black Glass Ambrotypes (wet plate collodion images). That’s not going to happen and, moreover, I don’t want it to happen. You see, I realize that the concept of this project is bigger than the craft of this project. It other words, the idea is much stronger than the images I would or could make of former synagogue sites. It’s a strange problem to have. It’s usually the other way around for an artist; it’s all craft and no concept. Hit a random “fine art photo” site and you’ll see what I mean.

The Mainz Synagogue

Here's my solution: I'm goign to include my portraiture work, landscape work and object work all under the umbrella of the Kristallnacht project. I’ve decided that even though these objects, people or landscape scenes, weren’t (necessarily) here, they all share a common link to either the victims or the perpetrators both in idea and the physical world. And, after all, my message is about the questions surrounding Kristallnacht and ultimately, the Holocaust.