Hindsight
Amy James
December 1, 2022 – December 31, 2022

Amy James is a darkroom photographer whose eye for composition is unmatched. She is able to pull the dramatic from the seemingly ordinary. She captures life’s tiny moments with virtuosic ease. Using black and white traditional photographic processes, she harnesses the artistic elements of value and contrast to highlight the inherent beauty of whatever is on the opposite side of her lense. She can create mystery in a portrait, and drama with a flower. She uses natural lighting, and patience to find scenes that are compelling and captivating.

In her current body of work, Hindsight, she plays with the common American phrase, “Hindsight is 2020.” The title is meant to allow the viewer to reflect and learn.

“These images were shot and/or created in 2020 when everything we thought we knew or understood about life, the world, or ourselves was shaken to the core. The shift was abrupt and unexpected. I was just beginning to heal from a devastating personal loss when the entire world seemed to unravel into unfathomable darkness. The pandemic brought on isolation, some forced and some not.
As an artist and photographer, I began to focus the lens on what was before me… to strive for some sort of semblance of order or grounding. To seek light or hope through all the chaos.” – James