Dianne Davis’ exhibition Impervious examines themes of fragility, transience, and the brevity of life. This sumptuous series borrows from the 17th-century Dutch still-life painting of memento mori, an artistic genre and Latin phrase meaning “remember you must die.” The 19th-century Victorian tradition of flower pressing is also an ongoing influence, which acts as a metaphor for the impermanence of existence despite human efforts to resist this inevitability. In Davis’ work, photography is used in a similar way; a hopeful but futile attempt to freeze a “slice” of time. In contrast to the conventional quick snapshot–taken in a fraction of a second–each image in this series consists of a 15-20 minute exposure lit with varied light sources. The resulting elaborate and highly detailed tableaus, are set against pitchblack backgrounds that suppress the surrounding world. Here, the isolated subject is dislocated from its context through a dark field, creating an ambiguity around the specificity of time and space.

Davis investigates concepts of time, both in the subjects she chooses as well as in the ways she photographs them. Her work captures a sense of human disconnect, from each other and the environment, revealing a retreat into detached, individual worlds.