My artistic practice explores human vitality through linkages with the natural environment. I employ the photographic medium as an agent for unifying disparate and mysterious aspects of existence, highlighting parallels between the exterior world of water, body, forest and sky and the interior realms of secrets, adventure, and enlightenment. The visual inspirations for this work include the natural sights of Cape Cod, a consistent concentration on the human figure, and imagery of waves and currents appropriated from my work as an oceanographer.
Beginning with the traditional process of black and white film, my first bodies of work entitled Terra Corpus (2002-present), Bare Limb (2005-present) and Venuses (2005-present), relate formal rhythms and symmetries coexisting in the human body and in elements of its enveloping earthen landscape. Foundational to this early work as well as to each new stage of my visual investigations is a tendency to be drawn to all that is flowing. These works integrate mysterious elements such as sand ripples, curvilinear tree limbs, water waves, wind-blown dune grasses with the arcs, dips and fold of the human figure.
My work over the past several years, collectively referred to as “Light Projects,” has made use of concentrated light sources to highlight human curves and capture the body's dynamics and motion. Under this umbrella, the series Encounters (2008-present) and Luminaries (2008-present) move beyond depicting concrete, formal unities to evoke inner states of imagination and enlightenment. The incorporation of special lighting techniques unhinges my subjects from a physical idea of a distinct moment, place, or body. Dancers (2010-present) centers largely on the energy of movement. I am thrilled to be able to work with a number of Boston area dancers, including those of the Contrapose Dance Company.
Larry Pratt