Wilson 4
© Eric Pickersgrill
Eric Pickersgrill: Removed
Removed is a series of large format black and white photographs that are of individuals performing as if they are using their devices although their phones and tablets have been physically removed from their hands moments prior to the exposure.
Removed avails performance, portraiture, and photography to question the physical utility of personal devices and the ways they influence society, relationships, and the body. The photographed scenes are derived from observations in my daily life. I ask the sitters to reenact my original observations and seconds before the exposure is made, I remove the device from the their hand. The sitter is asked to remain frozen as if they were still engaged with their device. The project is a form of intervention, calling attention to the use of devices by family members and those around me that I do not know. The making of the photograph operates as a way of disrupting the isolation I feel from strangers who barricade themselves behind their technology. This exchange creates new relationships while also asking the viewer to question their own device habits. I am excited by the way the viewer fills in the device at first look. It is as if the device has become one with the body and can be seen when not present.
The photographs operate as mirrors that help viewers question their own use of technology. The smart phone and the Internet will be known as the industrial revolution of our time and these photographs represent this worldwide digital revolution.
About:
Eric Pickersgill is a full time artist, husband, and father working in North Carolina. He was born in Homestead, Florida in 1986 and spent his teenage years in Charlotte, North Carolina. He received a Master of Fine Arts degree at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2015 and a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a concentration in Fine Art Photography from Columbia College Chicago in 2011. Between 2011 and 2013 Eric taught high school in Charlotte, NC via Teach for America.
2016 Ted Talk by Eric "Do Our Devices divide Us?"
His passion for teaching and image making allows him to see the connections that the two share. In his work, Eric explores the ways technology, the internet, social media, and photography influence the world. His choice of large format film cameras help him to work thoughtfully, slowly, and meticulously. Eric often works in public settings, relying on the building of relationships in order to make photographs.