Florida Series

The Florida series came about by my travels down to Miami. South Beach was just coming into its re-gentrification and there were still many buildings, stores, and signage dating back to the early 50's. The decor was still "d�co" from that era, in original condition for better or worse. It thus made my photos look "dated" from another time period. The light was soft in the mornings with little contrast, and by the afternoon one was able to photograph hard shadows with strong delineation between dark and light (chiaroscuro). In the afternoon the sky turned a deep shade of blue, making the background recede in space. At night the colors changed again. Neon signs took over and another kind of "glow" became present. Many of the photographs were taken with my still video camera thus having instant access to the pictures. Editing took place almost immediately. It allowed me to work with the images in juxtaposition easily. The collages flowed better because of it.

The Florida series was the first in the "new Gartel" mode of a body of work of combined imagery. The results are raw, honest, experimentation that maintains its own presence.

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