CONTACT Photography Festival – Solo Show

Out of the Darkness is a series of commemorative and documentary abstract photographs based on how cities heal after a tragedy.

This is our story – it is a Toronto story and it is also a global story. Humanity will survive.
This series, Out of the Darkness, provides an renewed way of initiating a discussion on the tragedies of random violence without the use of representational graphic imagery. In these images, we see beyond the chaos and destruction and find a way to reconnect with ourselves, with each other and with our living spaces.

Each creation is a manipulation of a single rectangular source image which is captured, site specific, in the different cities represented. The image undergoes a transformation of multiple iterations and layering in order to create the vibrant geometry, resonating of our collective humanity.

Each piece is titled by the city and the date of the event. It is up to the viewer to discover the connections. Other cities, to name a few, represented in this collection so far are: New York, Pittsburgh, Orlando, Barcelona, Madrid, Paris, Berlin and Prague. Each piece is a 40”x40” limited edition.

Press release available here.

Current Body of Work

Out of the Darkness
How do cities heal?  We step “Out of the Darkness”

Limited edition archival pigment prints

60″ x 60″ – editions of 3
40″ x 40″ – editions of 10 + AP
24″ x 24″ – editions of 15 + AP

Cities represented:

Out of the Darkness is a series of commemorative, documentary and aesthetically pleasing works based on how cities heal after a tragedy. 

Each creation is a manipulation of a single rectangular source image which is captured, site specific, in the different cities represented.  The image undergoes a transformation of multiple iterations and layering in order to create the vibrant geometry, representative of our collective humanity.

The circle is a line without a beginning or end. It can be seen as a symbol of wholeness and perfection, or of power, motion and time. 

How do we save the light of the ones we lost and of those who are forever marked by the event?  How do we find that courage and resilience to continue? Moreover, how do we dispel the darkness?

This series, Out of the Darkness, provides an intelligent way of initiating a discussion on the tragedies of random violence without the use of representational graphic imagery. In these images, we see beyond the chaos and destruction and find a way to  reconnect with ourselves, with each other and with our living spaces.

Each piece is titled by the city and the date of the event.  It is up to the viewer to discover the connections.

Toronto-based photo artist Thomas Brasch documents international locations that have witnessed acts of violence. He takes photographs of notable architectural landmarks, in order to create iridescent jewel-like abstractions. He wants to demonstrate, that despite the abhorrent tragedy and irrecoverable loss of human life, resilience and survival can rise up and radiate, after the chaos of rage and terror. 

This series made its debut during Contact 2018, in Toronto. Since 2015, he has been developing and refining his technique. His process includes researching incidents and scouting the cities to find an appropriate source image. In the studio, hours are dedicated to editing and manipulating to achieve the final image.

Thomas seeks to donate an Artist Proof of each image to the respective organizations that are creating memorials for these events.

Oculus

Limited edition archival pigment prints (framed or unframed)
40″ x 40″ – editions of 6
24″ x 24″ – editions of 10

The original series which reflects the natural world around us.  The source images are mostly still life selections. There are a few that are actually landscapes.

 

Oculus Constructed

Limited edition archival pigment prints (framed or unframed)
40″ x 40″ – editions of 6
24″ x 24″ – editions of 10

Tapestry

Limited edition archival pigment prints (framed or unframed)
40″ x 40″ – editions of 6
24″ x 24″ – editions of 10

This series of carpets from the Middle East were inspired by our friend, Golnar Rasty, who told me to come to her house and photograph her carpets.  She thought that they might work into something when she saw Untitled #15 from the original series.  She is a pathologist.  I am married to one as well.  They have a trained eye for patterns – mostly at the cellular level – but I can see how the tiny microcosms they look at on a daily basis can translate into the environments we live in.

I also had the opportunity to photograph many carpets at the Turco Persian Rug Company, courtesy of  Jessica Kasparian and Dan Buganto who threw their opens to greet my lights and camera.

Through all of this, I learned so much about what I thought were just Persian carpets.  They are not only Persian, but can be Turkish, Uzbekistanian, Afghani, etc.  These carpets are named after their geographical region as well as the common characteristics and materials found within the carpet weavers traditions.  There carpets from Qom, Tabriz, and Isfahan, for instance within the current borders of Iran/Persia.  Many of the tribes were also nomadic and crossed many borders many times.

Perisa 14 which was featured in the Snap 2018 Live Auction and is also the source of a blog post on Medium.com is actually a Turkish Heriz.  The blog is entitled Knots of Life.