Richard Coghlan

Artist Statement

Coghlan’s current working practice uses medium format analogue photography taken with a 1935 Box Brownie camera. It is self-portraiture with the use of long and multiple exposure techniques where the artist becomes both part object and subject of the work. Inspired by the tension of the object-subject reality and approaching such questions philosophically, the work draws upon issues of identity and story and questions the truth or lack thereof of such phenomena. It is curiosity which drives the creative need to explore this unfolding story, where not knowing the outcome is often the very reason for the doing. From a controlled studio practice and domestic spaces utilising reflected natural light to remote forest environments the approach is open and organic acknowledging play as a driving force for creativity.

The body morphing between itself in separate moments gives a sense of something vulnerable simultaneously disappearing and emerging within its surroundings. Recording these tangible interactions of the body on different environments results in imagery which invites further examination. It can result in questioning the photograph and also the context and place in which the work was made. At the same time there is a psychological dimension to the work addressing our sense of individuality, our place of being in the world and a seeming need or desire to make a record of this.

Membership: Darkroom