Susan Amkraut

I use 3D computer animation software to create my images. By writing code which builds and moves objects using complex algorithms, I construct an abstract, dynamic 3D world of my own design. I shine lights on this world, and place a virtual camera in it. Then I “take a picture”. When and for how long to open the virtual shutter determines the quality of the motion blur produced as objects move past the camera. So each image is a time lapse exposure of an algorithmically orchestrated temporal event. Gradually, I adjust the motion algorithm, as well as the lighting, colors, camera and timing, searching through the space until I find an image which speaks to me, where I feel the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. I seek poetic minimalism, subliminal associations, ambiguity, shifting processes and structures, and a sense of the passage of time.

I have always loved the clean, crisp look of prints. So the final form of these images is prints. But the screen, which shines light into your eyes and mixes colors in light, is very different from paper, which has light shining on it and mixes colors in pigments. Careful conversion from screen to paper is a critical part of my process. I adjust contrast, lightness, and tone to perfect the printed form of the image. I use archival Hahnemuhle Museum Etching paper and archival pigment inks. I compute the images at very high resolution to better reveal the rich, delicate details. These details are enhanced in print; they often look like gestural marks made by pastels or chalk streaking across the surface of soft, white paper.