Sandra Ullmann
Artist Statement
Bangladesh in Light and Shadow: I am drawn to light and shadow, to forms emerging and disappearing. While my photos also describe scenes and interactions, for this submission I have chosen ten images in which strong light and deep shadow define what we see. Some are representational, showing one or more individuals caught clearly in the light. In others, the subject is the shadow itself, cast by an individual who is not fully present or not present at all. Such images become more abstract. And in still others, we find a dance between light and shadow, between images emerging and disappearing. These images were made during a two-week trip to northeast Bangladesh with a small group of photographers. We traveled by van, climbing out when we saw something we wanted to explore, most frequently in the early morning and late afternoon when the light was spectacular. We walked through village markets and back alleys and into fields where people were planting. We stopped to investigate brick factories and the harvesting and drying of rice. We followed railroad tracks where village life had materialized on either side of the tracks. We waded across a shallow river delta, watching people plant rice seedlings. We sipped countless cups of tea from the many tea stalls that served each community. Walking the streets of rural villages in Bangladesh, I looked into the dark stalls and corners, waiting for a face to emerge and be held by the light. In contrast, I sometimes found a full shadow cast on a street or a wall, created by someone who moved across a beam of light.
Sandra Ullmann | Portland, OR