Phantasmagoria explores a state of anxiety caused by the passage of time, specifically in relation to things that disappear through the development of both ideology and technology. Just as the ghosts and demons projected by the 18th century Phantasmagoria or Magic Lantern disappear as the flame of projection is extinguished, this series of images attempt to reflect upon notions of being extinguished, of disappearance and redundancy. The two images here focus on the traces of chemical and silver residue ingrained into darkroom paraphernalia as evidence of the countless images produced and circulated both within a university photography department and the wider world. The image is captured on a large format camera, digitized and then printed onto the surface of matt inkjet paper to highlight a move away from the indexical nature of photographic emulsion to the surface of digital production.
Rachel Cunningham is a London based photographic artist. She studied fine art at Middlesex University before working in the photographic industry for several years. Her work has been selected for a number of exhibitions and is held in private collections both in the UK and abroad.