Tricia Gahagan: 11:11 Mirroring Consciousness

Tricia Gahagan: 11:11 Mirroring Consciousness by Aline SmithsonSeptember 12, 2017

Tricia_Gahagan-1_TheLastGoodbyeTheFirstHello

©Tricia Gahagan, The Last Goodbye. The First Hello, “This chance photograph was taken just a few short hours before my father unexpectedly crossed over. It will forever mark his homecoming back to a light-filled world.”

I met Tricia Gahagan at the 2016 PhotoNOLA Portfolio Reviews when she shared her project, 11:11 Mirroring Consciousness. It’s a conceptual exploration of the self as a mirror, moments of serendipity, and juxtapositions of space and time. Since that meeting, I was delighted to learn that Tricia’s work received the first The John Chervinsky Emerging Photographer Scholarship, an award “to recognize, encourage and reward photographers with the potential to create a body of work and sustain solo exhibition”. Selected by jurors Leslie K. Brown, Barbara Hitchcock, Mary Virginia Swanson and Richard Levy and awarded annually, the Scholarship provides recipients with a monetary award, a Master class with Mary Virginia Swanson, an exhibition of their work at the Griffin Museum of Photography, and a volume from John’s personal library of photography books. The Scholarship seeks to “provide a watershed moment in the professional lives of emerging photographers, providing them with the support and encouragement necessary to develop, articulate and grow their own vision for photography”.

On September 7th, Tricia opened a solo show of this work at the Griffin Museum of Photography, running through October 1, 2017. For the exhibition, Tricia created an installation with custom cut mirrors as a way to echo the first line of the project statement “How often do we pause and pay attention to the messages the world is mirroring back to us?” . When visitors stand in front of the mirror they are prompted to express their reflection about what the world is mirroring back to them. She has included small 3″square mirrors where visitors can write this reflection on with a sharpie and take home with them (note many have decided leave their notes to share with others).

©Tricia Gahagan, install photo

©Tricia Gahagan, install photo

©Tricia Gahagan, install photo

Tricia Gahagan is a fine art photographer born and raised in Providence, RI. She is a first-time recipient of the John Chervinsky Emerging Photographer Scholarship from The Griffin Museum of Photography. Her work has been exhibited and published throughout the United States and internationally. She began her career in fine art photography after over a decade in marketing and advertising. In 2012 she attended Corcoran College of Art & Design then continued to the New England School of Photography in Boston. She then went on to study under Joyce Tenneson and Cig Harvey. In addition to her art she is a contributor to LA Yoga and Boston Yoga magazines and serves on the board of New Harmony Farm. Gahagan is based out of Newbury, MA with her young family. When she’s not behind her camera she loves doing yoga, hiking, and meditating.

©Tricia Gahagan, 4:44

11:11 Mirroring Consciousness

How often do we pause and pay attention to the messages the world is mirroring back to us?

“11:11 Mirroring Consciousness” illustrates the introspective significance of the moment; the notion that every experience, relationship, decision, and habit is a mirror. These found moments capture this mirror and freeze space from within consciousness; nothing is constructed. They are subtle, hidden moments that reveal insights, guidance, and answers.

Each image appears as a question, a paradox, a koan: a means to challenge the limits of the analytical mind and engage contemplation. They blur the lines between perception and illusion, darkness and light. Their contrast coupled with silence necessitates a heightened awareness to look deeper inside while witnessing the everyday world around us. – Tricia Gahagan