Karl Marx says that the problem with beauty is that it doesn’t talk back; that is its strength in fact. Its silence reminds us about grace. –Elizabeth Chiles

Taking compositions found within the landscape as a as a starting place, Elizabeth Chiles builds a syntax out of the formal and affective relationships between darkness and natural light. Her photographs endow light with temporal and spatial presence—a visible presence that nonetheless gestures toward the imperceptible and ineffable. This handling of light transforms the everyday into something to be revered. In this way, the works in Hymn explore a presence akin to that of an icon, altar or inspired text, namely, the aura of the sacred.

Elizabeth Chiles studied with Henry Wessel, Linda Connor and Bill Berkeson in graduate school at San Francisco Art Institute. Her work has been shown at numerous places in the San Francisco area and in Texas including Stanford University, Okay Mountain, Texas State University, The Luggage Store and John Cleary Gallery.

Relevant Links

Elizabeth Chiles http://elizabethchiles.com/