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Biography
Faith Ploener is a senior BFA candidate at the University of Georgia’s Lamar
Dodd School of Art. Born in Wisconsin, Faith began photographing at the age
of nineteen. During the academic year of 2004-2005, she was the recipient of
the Mary Rosenblatt Photography Area Scholarship, as well as the co-president
of the Student Photography Association. Her work has been shown in several juried
exhibitions. She currently resides in Athens, Georgia.
Artist Statement
I am interested in photographing the human condition. Flaws, weakness, strength,
beauty, and awkwardness are the span of response we have to others and the camera.
The challenge of any portrait artist is to transcend the individual. I strive
for such images.
The camera that I use is a 4 x 5 view camera. Setting up each shot is an arduous
process, but the preparation time allows my subjects to become comfortable in
their surroundings. There are some instances where I take longer then necessary,
waiting until I see my subject naturally settle into a pose.
The death of my grandfather prompted my grandmother to move closer to her only
child, my mother. Since that time, I have forged an intimate bond with my grandmother.
She is healthy and strong of mind. The portraits of her were taken in my parent’s
house, where she now lives.
These images are about my grandmother’s life, both past and present, and my
understanding of her. To illustrate her past, I use old black and white photographs.
In “United,” we see her as a young woman in a red cross uniform under an image
of her future husband in his military college uniform. This image recalls a
time in America’s collective history when the government was trusted without
question.