AIDAN AVERY | Cowgirl (Gold), 2024

The “Mythologies” gold prints explore archetypal imagery from the Southwest. In this project, I am trying to encounter and understand mythologized imagery, traditions, and objects from the Sonoran Desert. I am also asking, what role, if any, remains for them in modern life. I created these works using darkroom processes, expired Polaroid film, as well as a rare, discontinued gelatin silver paper with a golden base. Working with “obsolete” materials and getting to know my surrounding desert both require hands-on relationships with the past. In the desert, I’m learning about a revered landscape’s history through physical exploration. In the darkroom, with the golden paper, I’m exploring what sorts of meaningful artistic creations remain possible with a forgotten, historical medium. In both cases, I’m prospecting for, and re encountering, certain archetypes and mythologies of the Southwest.

BIO

Aidan is a photographer based in Tucson, Arizona. He received an MFA from the University of Arizona in 2023 and a BA from Seattle University in 2018. Aidan works with creative applications of “obsolete” mediums — namely, discontinued films, papers, and Polaroids. His photographic work involves hands-on processes, including camera construction, Polaroid processes, traditional darkroom printing, and experimental darkroom methods.

Aidan also works at the Center for Creative Photography in Tucson, Arizona. He has exhibited work in galleries across the United States and has received several awards and grants, including the Big Sky Film Grant