I’m so pleased to share with everyone Amanda Charchian and I’s new collaborative photo series titled, “I IMAGINE YES IS THE ONLY LIVING THING.” The series delves into our mutual interest in the communication between spiritual and material realms and takes an experimental approach to creating in that realm. We believe spirits inhabit an immaterial, invisible and eternal world and interact with the visible, physical and temporal world. In this series we explore what these disembodied souls experience during this passage.

In the series Amanda is photographed enacting the famed quote by E.E. Cummings, “I IMAGINE YES IS THE ONLY LIVING THING.” To live in YES is to have a conscious awareness and acceptance of how things are while creating our own reality and transcending the limitations of the known world. To experience the realm of spirits, we must live in a world of YES beyond the 5 senses of the material world.

To explore the idea of “LIVING” in the quote, we employed various manifestations of ectoplasm, a symbolic material that represents the transition from a spiritual realm into the physical world.

The series was shot using 35mm film because its gritty grain perfectly translated the energy of each scene. We experimented with a variety of techniques and materials in each setup. I layered multiple exposures, took long exposures and even under exposed some shots. We also tried out hand tinting and collage.

We hope you enjoy our artistic love child.

Photography: Claire Oring
Concept/Model: Amanda Charchian
Art Direction: Amanda Charchain and Claire Oring

*Amanda’s work often explores the concept of Yes. If you are fascinated by this idea check out more of her work here: amandacharchian.com