deankessmann

that which is no longer there, if it ever was

archival pigment prints, various sizes, 2018–ongoing
edition 1/1 with 1AP at 5 different sizes

archival pigment prints
various sizes, 2018–ongoing
edition 1/1 with 1AP at 5 different sizes

Read a short description of this project

that which is no longer there, if it ever was

This work titled that which is no longer there, if it ever was grew out of the broader and more open-ended Meandering with Purpose. Like much of my work, the images in this series question the boundaries between abstraction and representation and enable me to explore the vast in-between space. The title of this project is meant to be a poetic reference to the fact that these are photographs of urban bulletin boards: the sides of metal utility boxes throughout Washington, DC where people post flyers and other types of announcements. These are spaces where information is shared, from advertising services and events to pictures of lost pets with the contact information of the owners. However, my interest is in the residue left behind when the signage has been ripped or worn off. My images reveal the tape or other adhesives that remain, paper flyers that have begun to disintegrate due to the weather conditions and no longer provide legible information, or the graffiti that serves as the foreground and/or background of these layered surfaces where various forms of communication take place.