-- Artist statement
Images of the Nearest Place is a diaristic project that aims to provide insight into my modus operandi as I transform and repurpose original contexts to create visual iterations of the transition between intentionality and abstract ideas. While fascinated by the photographic process and how ideas materialize into visual form, my direction to image-making incorporates repetition and an ever-evolving aesthetic rooted in conceptual decisions. The work features snapshot-like aesthetic images, using deconstructive approaches accompanied by backstage narratives. These narratives reveal the balance between personal storytelling and "reality," concurrently delving into the medium's technical and sensory aspects, such as altering dimensional illusions, paper textures, and image sizes. Through exploring the photography's propensity from various obliques, the project serves as a physical and visual archive of my labour, my relationship with the medium, and the means of production, questioning and reassessing my performance; as a conscious photographer.
Guoman Liao 廖国满 is a Chinese photographer currently based in Montreal, Canada. He started taking photographs when he was studying sociology at University in 2011. He initially went out into the streets taking portraits and later developed the interest for fashion photography, while drawing inspiration from medieval paintings, sculptures, and vintage films. His interest in exploring the physical and abstract materials involved in photography allows him to examine the medium’s reproducing nature, evidentiary function, and the sensory relation between text, imagery, and various media. Through his artistic practice, the everyday mundane and Chinese cultural relation to the West are the recurring themes in his work.
