Robert Morrissey

Soul Shifting

I envision Soul Shifting as an eventual book project. The project is comprised of 3 series (25 images each) of fine art photography-lens-based images. The 10 images submitted are excerpts from the 3 series: The Dance of Dance, Snake Pit, and Purgation. Together they explore transitional stages between death and eternity.

In The Dance of Death, a skeleton dances alone or invites partners for a final pas de deux.

In The Snake Pit, serpents surround and coil the souls, drawing them into the abyss.

In Purgation, a solitary soul is depicted in the throes of purgation, wading through past sins and transgressions.

The soul is experiencing a final state of reckoning,

The project’s look and method of delivery owe a debt of influence to the work of Ray Harryhausen’s early stop-motion animation, Man Ray’s tonal inversions of positive images, as well as reverse glass painting.

I drew from my collection of dolls and toys as well as a variety of reflective and textured surfaces to stage my images. They were all shot using natural light. I inverted the images and massaged the color and tonal values in post-production. I trust that my process and instincts will be attuned for when the “aha” moment arrives. I want the result to have a “handmade” quality.

‘Soul Shifting’ is an attempt to reconcile my lifelong preoccupation with death as well as the fears and desires of the unconscious mind that inform it.