Meet the Artist – Eric Clay

Eric has an extensive background in design and photography. At 20 years of age he landed his first graphic design job in an advertising agency. It was here that his interest in photography began to take shape and he spent the next decade honing his craft. In 2009 he began to exhibit his landscape and travel photography work at juried fine art festivals. Over the past 10 years he has exhibited in dozens of prominent national art shows and has won multiple awards.

Victorian Creatures is a culmination of two decades of design and photography experience combined with a love for the history of photography as well as antiques and oddities.

Artist Statement

My Work is an absurdist look to a moment in time that marks a turning point for humanity in which technology, including photography, began to move forward at a rapid rate. I combine Victorian era portraits that I source from antique stores with my own animal photography as a juxtaposition to reflect on the unique behaviors and evolving social constructs that separate us from other animals.

Process

Limited Editions

In my process on limited edition prints I explore the history of photography itself by working backwards in time. I begin with creating my images digitally, make prints out of them, shoot them with a 4×5 film view camera and then print the pieces to painted sheets of metal using liquid silver gelatin emulsion in a darkroom. This process allows for variation in the pieces so that no two are ever exactly the same. The prints are finalized by placing them into custom built distressed float frames. Limited editions are limited to 20 18×24 prints and 40 8×10 prints.

Cabinet Cards

Cabinet cards were the predominate form of portrait photography between 1870 – 1900. The distinctive cards were intended to be displayed on shelves and were often heavily branded with information about the photo studio. With the cabinet cards that I offer I have designed a card that captures many of the characteristics that were common to the cards from the 1800s. Each card is crafted by hand and distressed to look like it is from the 1800s. They look great when simply placed on a mini easel or put into a clip or float frame.

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