Exploration into the Fire Studies

Eternal life is often represented by the flame just as fire is associated with life.  Conversely, the extinguishment of flame is associated with death. Life is literally impossible without fire. Earth itself would die completely without the Sun. One of the five basic elements on earth, fire stands equal to water, air, earth and wood. Each one of these elements exist in harmony with the others, never standing alone, for their singular existence is reliant upon the whole of their existence. Life is not sustainable in a world without the existence of each element living together in harmony. While the extinguishment of any element, therefore, represents death, it is fire that provides us with the most dramatic and identifiable essence of the duality of life and death.  

Fire is the element associated with the third chakra that is located at the solar plexus. This chakra is called Manipura, which is translated as “lustrous jewel” and is the energy center governing inner strength, self confidence and power. Manipura is the “fire” within us that motivates thought into action and moves us forward.

This third chakra is governed by the Vedic God of Fire, Agni.  Agni is represented by the color red and is a non-discriminating two headed god who treats all beings as equals. He is the messenger between the celestial realm and the human realm and is definitive of the Ayurvedic concept of fire. Agni is the force of intelligence within every function and system of the human body, and as so is the governor of all that enters our cells and tissues and what must be removed from our system. According to Ayurveda, death is the result when Agni no longer exists.

The fiery nature of Agni is represented by each of his two heads.  One is characterized as the benevolent head that is a part of bonfires, kitchens and jovial gatherings. Stories tell about how people would toss prayers into the fire to be carried to the gods by Agni. The second head is described as destructive as it destroys the emotions of the ego. In this practice, Agni incinerates fear, jealousy, control and anger into ashes that are then reabsorbed into the earth.

Fire is an integral part of our lives. Whether we are fascinated by it or pay little attention to it, we are reliant upon it and carry a programed respect for it. Fire is a perfect visual ambassador for the concept of duality.  While fire is often used beneficially to comfort us, to cook our food or to provide warmth, it also has the ability to cause absolute destruction. Both the creative and the destructive force of fire is born by the same life that is the fire itself.

It is this life of fire that I am interested to explore with this new photographic study.  I am interested to explore the dualism between life and death as represented by fire and to determine what that looks like.  Fire exists only as long as it is alive. The moment that there is no living flame is the precise moment of its death. Fire can not be captured, it can only be fed. For example, putting a candle into a glass jar and sealing it with a lid will starve the flame of oxygen, ultimately resulting in its death. Another approach to this would be to capture the fire, for a precise moment, using a device that can transfer it to another place where it cannot exist. Again the result is death.  If a camera is used to carry out this second approach, then we have captured an image of the fire at the precise moment that it ceased to exist in any place other than where it was alive. This image represents a precise moment of death.  

I have spent the last decade exploring the natural elements of the Earth through the lens of a camera. The ever growing body of work that I create is called the “Departure Collection” and it contains an expanding array of original art that transcends how we perceive the natural world around us through our senses. This most recent exploration into the element of fire I am calling “Fire Studies” as a working title.  In the same manner as with previous studies, I am interested to witness both the masculine and femenine qualities that inherently exist within the elemental subject. My artwork is largely conceived by thought that is guided through spiritual practice and created in a meditative fashion. After having created work about the elements through the “Water Studies” and “Tree Studies” (Wood) collections, I feel that working now in the realm of fire that I have expanded my exploration of these elements to a deeper level. 

The Mechanical Process

Photograph a small fire created in either the chiminea, campfire pit, charcoal grill. Process this photograph in the traditional manner of developing film.  Rather than processing the photograph as a positive image, process the photograph as the native negative image. The photograph needs to be made at night, the darker the background the better. A black background could be used as an alternative, but does not allow the camera to capture as wide of a color spectrum of the flame, sparks or smoke.

Begin processing with Adobe Raw and make normal initial adjustments making sure to increase clarity and checking for preferred white balance, then convert the image to black and white. Make adjustments as desired to both the whites and the blacks. Remove the black background to reveal transparency. Create several layers using selected parts of the image, the gradations of greys and the hard whites and blacks.  Begin to craft the image using the various individual parts as desired. Once the final image is made, save the image file in native format then flatten the layers and export as a high quality/ resolution TIFF file. This is the final artwork that is ready to be printed.

Keeping in mind the desired look/ feel of the final artwork, select the paper to print the final image onto.  This would typically be a cotton rag paper or a hot press bright white paper. With the image printed, determine what parts or areas need to be accentuated. Using a combination of ink, pen, and/ or graphite outline and/ or fill in these areas by hand. An alternative to this last process is to print the image in reverse so that a transfer can be made on to media with an underpainting layer such as canvas or paper.