Construct NYC 19, 1984

To make her ‘Construct’ series of photographs, Barbara Kasten first arranged large triangular mirrors, plaster pyramids, wooden rods, curvy latticework, and other objects recalling architectural elements in a room-sized set within her studio. She then created vibrant, saturated colors by theatrically lighting these props with colored gels and scrims, strategically generating shadows and reflections. Thus she constructed the composition through elaborate stagecraft rather than by manipulating the image afterward in the darkroom. By focusing on relationships of volume, mass, shape, position, and light, Kasten investigates the potential of photography as an abstract yet still insistently representational medium. The paradox of the ‘Construct’ series is that it realistically documents the illusionary arrangements before the camera lens.