ABOUT THE EXHIBITION

Candela Gallery is excited to present States of Leisure, a solo exhibition of new works by Brooklyn-based artist Dana Bell. Through her practice, Bell unifies traditional painting, darkroom techniques, and digitally fabricated objects as she explores the evolving nature of the snapshot—tracing its transformative state from a singular, analog moment to a continually shifting digital artifact.

Bell uses laser-cut plexiglass and cutting-edge 3D rendering techniques to create intricate photographic negatives that challenge traditional methods of reproduction. These custom-made objects, constructed by hand using fabrics, sections of cut lumens, and cyanotype prints, undergo a transformative process that results in a diverse range of photographic prints, including vibrant chromogenic prints, platinum-over-inkjet prints, chrome-toned gelatin silver prints, cyanotypes, and aristotypes on metal.

By making the technological processes behind image creation visible, Bell deconstructs the mysticism of the analog photographic object. Drawing on historical photographic studies, such as Eadward Muybridge’s Animal Locomotion, Bell reimagines movement and materiality through hybrid methods, creating images that explore the interplay between human interaction and technological mediation. Within the exhibition, Bell presents varied expressions of leisure, ranging from quiet moments of enjoyment to a more Victorian-era state of repose—one marked by nervous exhaustion and existential unease in response to the accelerating pace and pressures of modern life—ultimately blurring the lines between work and play.

States of Leisure invites viewers to reconsider photography in the age of hyper-documentation, fostering a reimagined dialogue between technology, materiality, and memory.