Common Ground - Ann Villano
Common Ground
Ann Villano
Several years ago, I became obsessed with taking photos of decaying edifices: barns, old houses, falling stone walls. When I considered images for "Between Bodies," I focused instead on images where I see a transference of energy between two entities. In these photos, trees or plants are giving, taking, and supporting. They stand guard over a cemetery, beam energy onto a decaying house, or hold up decaying walls. In some cases, one cannot be sure where one material starts and the other ends.
We (modern humans, that is) have only recently come to understand the wisdom of plant life. What might be perceived as choking or a smothering nuisance might be a form of generosity and regeneration. Artist Tate Klacsmann talks about how his work captures the common ground of animals living in our man-made spaces; critics accuse him of anthropomorphizing. He says, perhaps instead, we should shift our perspective and imagine how animals may behave when we're not around to observe them. How do these plant forms behave when we are not around to control them? I am interested in how these forms share energy through light and gesture. Matter constantly changes form, and we live in too short a life span (or perhaps rush through too fast?) to see the metamorphosis.
Ann Villano grew up in Washington, D.C., and has pursued work in filmmaking, education, and photography. She earned a BA in English from Colby College in Waterville, ME., an MFA in filmmaking from Columbia University, School of the Arts, and completed coursework in ceramics at the Corcoran School of Art. She currently lives in Lakeville, CT with her family and teaches in the Photography, Film, and Related Media program at The Hotchkiss School. Much of her photography is inspired by her summers in Blue Hill, Maine and her visits to San Miguel de Allende.
Instagram: @AnnVillo
