Alyson Belcher

Ice Portals

Ice Portals is a series of photographs taken during the unusually cold winter of 2017 in Bend, Oregon. These photographs are records of the unique ice formations that I discovered during my early morning walks. Each day I would visit the same location to find a completely new configuration of ice, depending on the weather. The dramatic changes were the result of snow and ice slowly thawing and refreezing. Since the late 1870’s, photography has been used to capture things that are ephemeral and invisible to the naked eye. Camera technology has given us the ability to see our world from extreme perspectives, from the smallest of microscopic details to vast aerial landscapes. Each of the topographic studies in Ice Portals is an abstract landscape that challenges our sense of scale. The lines, shapes and textures combined with the mysterious qualities of light and shadow create a confusing space that is fragile and fleeting.

Photographer

Alyson Belcher

All of my work is united by my obsession with the two most basic elements of photography: light and time. My projects have ranged from self-portraits to abstract landscapes. I have worked with many photographic processes, ranging from the earliest type of camera (pinhole) to the latest in digital technology. New projects are born out of a need to communicate something internally and curiosity about different ways to work with the medium. I look for the relationships between darkness and light, stillness and movement. My subjects usually demonstrate changes that take place slowly over time, whether it’s in nature or the human body.

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