Chroma

Beginning in the 1860's the technique of hand-coloring black and white portraiture was an expressive, imaginative and transformative act. The process of painting onto a portrait was powerful; it facilitated a dream and made anything possible. Your clothes could be embellished to look expensive, jewelry could be created from scratch and loved ones could be made to look healthy or years younger. The collaboration between the photographer and subject was empowering both creating and preserving the vision you wished to project of yourself to your friends and family as well as generations to come.

Chroma is a portrait series digitally exploring the expressive, imaginative and transformative technique of hand-colored portraiture. This series encapsulates a cross-section of ethnic and economic backgrounds common throughout Brooklyn, celebrating individual eccentricity and dignity. Using Photoshop, each color is painted through a series of layers using a stylus and tablet to mimic the process of painting. Large areas of color are painted by hand, never selected and "filled in" maintaining the quality of individual mark making and expression.