Cal State Long Beach studio art major Lisa Talbot suffers from multiple sclerosis, but she uses photography and sculpture to help her fight the mental and psychological pains associated with her condition.
Talbot takes on Carl Jung’s psychological theory of the active imagination in her current exhibition, “Cycles.” The collection of photos forms a circle around the Max L. Gatov Gallery and portrays her inner pains through glossy images of found object sculptures.
According to Jung’s theory, unconscious thoughts can be translated through visual or literal means. Talbot’s photos stem from her dreams and the pain she encounters from her health troubles.
“Psychologically, we have stuff in our heads that we aren’t conscious of,” Talbot said.
Acupuncture needles come out of fuchsia fabric intertwined with lime-green ribbons and open medication bottles illuminated by reflective light bouncing off the crystals, which are strung together to make up Talbot’s images.
“It’s evocative. It is surreal to me,” said Los Angeles resident Preston Gelberwolf. “She uses recognizable objects in an untraditional way.”
Talbot regularly gets acupuncture as treatment for her physical health. Needles overtake the entire left side of one piece, which was photographed while she visited her acupuncture practitioner several times a week.
Talbot’s photos combine contrasting ideas and objects, including bright blue sticks of rock candy that rest upon torn-up pieces of chicken wire.
“The vibrant colors remind me of childhood, but that’s at first glance,” said Long Beach resident Dorothy Morris.
Each photo’s complexity is representative of life, Talbot said. She plays with the clashing and complementing elements in her photos to depict pain versus happiness.
“That’s how life is,” she said. “Some things make me well, some things make me not well.”
Talbot shoots with her choice of 160VC negative film and uses her favorite Toyo G2 4×5 camera. She used the same camera and film for her entire collection, and does not include any digital manipulation. She relies on lighting and composition to create dream-like settings.
“I work in a specific way; connecting to my unconscious,” Talbot said. “I have to go through a certain process.”
“Cycles” makes up Talbot’s senior thesis and marks the completion of her work in the MFA program. She plans to continue pursuing photography and work more with sculpture and instillation in future projects.
More of Talbot’s work can be viewed on her website at lisatalbot.com.
“Cycles” will run until Thursday of this week. The Max V. Gatov gallery is open Monday through Thursday from noon to 5 p.m. and Wednesday from noon to 7 p.m.
