Krista Comeau’s exhibition of hand-tinted photos, I went out to the hazel wood, at Utility Gallery (5224 Blowers) is like dreamy time-travel back to an era where live operators still connect your phone calls. There’s something slightly eerie about some scenes—a distraught, braided woman, alone in the woods, her suitcase of teacups and pearls spilled out in the leaves. “In most cases if I’m setting up a scene, I don’t like any objects, hairstyles, clothing or backgrounds to look too modern,” says Comeau. “I’d like the photos to be vague about when they were taken, not scream 2008.” The Oz-ish colours appeal the artist’s aesthetic. “I was mostly drawn to hand-tinting because I love the dreamy quality of it,” she says. “It can turn a photograph of a real time/place into a kind of surreal atmosphere.” Comeau tried to imitate the process in Photoshop, but couldn’t get the “same tactile quality” as the real deal. For this series, she used a view camera, “so taking the photos alone was time consuming. I also had to print using a specific fiber-based paper so the paint would absorb into the paper. This was probably the most time-consuming part because of tray processing and archiving the prints. After all that, the painting seemed like the easiest part.”
This article appears in Jul 31 – Aug 6, 2008.
