Ansel Adams coined the term “Extraction” when describing how a photographer cannot do what a non-objective painter does when creating an abstract piece; the painter can choose to put paint on one area of a canvas or not and as such, the abstraction is formed in the mind of the artist first. Instead what a photographer must do, is organize the elements of the present reality that are in the frame, and exclude all the non-necessary components. By doing so and “extracting” the composition from its original context and presenting the final image to the viewer, the abstraction is formed in the mind of the viewer, rather than in the opposite manner.

In my “Extractions” series, I explore the concept of abstraction in photography through the use of shape, color, texture, and composition. I intend for the viewers to see the image and for them to come to their own subjective conclusion.