Tony Amos, #2
Tony Amos is a hunter and gatherer of everyday discarded materials. Salvage and refuse have embedded histories. The objects, or artefacts, may be in a transient or composite state: breaking down, being added to, or both. Through his construction, Amos captures the form and character of these artefacts, thus elevating the ephemeral.
The books captured throughout the Matter series have been gathered in op shops, second hand bookstores, fairs, and trash deposits. Grouped, each assemblage has been variously burned, bleached, corroded, abraded, soaked, or enshrouded by rotting leaves. The analogue chromogenic prints represent the culmination of further acts of trauma and transformation: enlarging, chemistry, hand dodging, burning, colour washes and retouching. The resultant works embody ageing both simulated and organic, in an exploration of essentialism and entropy.