Beth Galton is a prominent food and still life photographer and director who has worked with pretty much every advertising agency, design firm, major American brand, and then some over the past thirty-five years. Influenced by the sensual, organic classicism of fine art photographers Edward Weston, Ansel Adams, and Edward Steichen, Beth’s meticulous and often witty botanical, food and fine art images elevate food and objects to art, combining her worldly cultural references and curiosity along with a resolute awareness of what’s now.
Beth shares a very personal series titled Memory of Absence with AtEdge
In 2017, my mother and father, who had not lived together for 50 years by that time, died within three days of each other. After my sister and I inherited my mother’s home, we were startled to find the extent to which she had been hoarding. We discovered her journals, copious letters written to family members and never sent, everyday objects and photographs depicting many family scenes that I have no memory of. A profound sadness combined with these surprising discoveries led to my creating this body of work exploring feelings, memories and even buried memories – all brought to the surface through these revelations.
These images are the fruition of much exploration. My creative process begins with composing and photographing a still life of the botanicals together with the objects that I have collected and saved from my mother’s home. I then print out the image and create yet another still life by layering more objects with the print and then re-photograph this composition. There by giving a further sense of the complex and layered emotions found within family dynamics.
Thank you for sharing this beautiful project with us.
To learn more about the work of Beth Galton please visit her site at Beth Galton.
