sh•photography

artist statement

Steven Harris has been working in photography for over 25 years. He began studies in Bloomington, Indiana, later studying fine art photography at Indiana University with Jeffrey Wolin. He was accepted to the renowned Ansel Adams workshop during which he realized his potential as a visual artist. He worked with a traditional large format camera and black and white film which greatly influenced his work and was pivotal in his experience as a photographer. Having left Indiana for New York, Harris would eventually move to Europe for 3 years to pursue independent photographic projects, before returning to New York City. Living and working in Europe while continuing to develop his photographic work was instrumental for Harris in achieving a unique vision as an artist. The varied cultures and historical landscapes of Holland, Belgium, Italy, Germany and France were an exhilarating environment to explore. His work has been rooted in the style of early photographers like Steglitz, Brassi, Cartier-Bresson, Minor White, Robert Frank and Ansel Adams. The progression of his photographic work into the digital age of the 90's created a new avenue for Harris to expand his ability to control the image and maintain the print quality that has always been paramount to his work. Now printing on watercolor paper with archival pigment ink, the direction of his work has moved to a slightly softer aesthetic. Harris continues creating images as a visual artist, photographing the urban landscape with a unique view of the city. Photography has always been an intuitive path that Harris has followed throughout his career in the pursuit of the decisive moment.