This exhibition is a sample of ongoing discoveries within two separate themes. Thinking back on almost a half century of image-making there is diversity in what interests my heart and eye. The word beauty has been a central theme from the beginning. It may be an out-of-date word, but I will stick with it. Beauty elevates the soul and describes the inner state of being in a place of wonder. I have always looked for subject matter that has an inherent sense of rising above its commonly recognizable form and that lifts me to a place of deep satisfaction. I respond to things that are often in plain sight, yet possess a “WOW” factor that comes by looking intently and allowing the subject to reveal its inner beauty. Photography, for all its innate documentation, has the potential to carry us into a place where reality begins to border on another realm, where the unintended beauty of the subject actually becomes something very special. It is more than just what the eye sees, it is where the heart engages in things that words can only play with.
What struck me about the pairing of grain facades and quarry environments was that both subjects are easily recognizable yet offer that window of higher potential. Neither silos nor quarries are made for esthetics. They aren’t intended to be visually appealing; they are intended to serve a function. Yet I believe that both offer more. I became interested in quarries and grain facilities in the early 1990s. They were just part of my ongoing discoveries as I sought significant subject matter.
I remain active in making images, I think in part because I have remained inquisitive and love the positive pursuit of the elusive, always looking for something to reveal its potential. In a sense, I go out to take images; but maybe more importantly, they have come to me. It’s as if there is a space inside of me, kind of like a room, that loves to collect scenes of unintended beauty.
-Michael Schultz
