Profile: Jack Perno
Based in Chicago, photographer Jack Perno has made a point of producing personal work, and when he discovered the Polaroid emulsion lift technique he knew that he had found a way of translating his visual message.
"It all started when I was invited to contribute to an exhibition that was being held at the Museum of Natural History in Chicago," he says. "A group of people were given a plain generic mask and asked to artistically interpret it with an individual style, and I decided to cover mine with a composite made from around 25-30 Polaroid emulsion lifts I enjoyed the experience, and It led me to produce individual images using the same technique."
Perno's Individual touches ensure that the Images that he produces are unique. "I don't shoot on negative stock and then project the image on to a sheet of Polaroid him," he says "I think that's a bit too safe, because If you make a mistake you can re-shoot, you can change the composition and all kinds of other things, and I feel that this lessens the value of the original.
"I prefer Instead to develop an original idea, to set something up and then to shoot direct on to 10 x 8in sheets of Polaroid film. From a selection of images that are produced, maybe just one or perhaps three to four at the most, will be selected for an emulsion lift I consider that the process is a little like panning for gold; amongst all the soil, sand and waste there's the occasional nugget waiting to be found, and that's why the pictures that work are so precious."
For Perno, one of the most important considerations when working this way is that the content should drive the technique. This means that the idea has to come first, and then the photographer shoots specifically with the aim of realising that concept. The success rate is likely to be limited if the process is carried out on a series of Polaroid pictures that have been shot for other purposes.
One of the great attractions of emulsion lift is that however much the artist might anticipate the final result, there is no way of judging precisely how an image will turn out. "A lot of people who produce emulsion lifts manipulate the emulsion after it has been removed from the water, using their fingers to get it into the desired position on the receptor material" says Perno "I don't emphasize that. Rather I use the action of the water to lift the emulsion, and move the receptor paper around and twist it to get the emulsion to fall where I want It, so that when I eventually pull it out there is a recognizable flow to the picture."
"If ten people were to take the same image and use this technique, none of them would get the same result, and I like that idea. There's no knowing how long it might take to get something that I'm happy with either; sometimes I can get what I want in under a minute, and at other times it can take hours, because I just can't find it."
"An important criteria of the technique is knowing when to stop; you can Just keep on working and working, although there is a point where the picture is finished, and that's when I try to exercise restraint The faster I can get the emulsion off the original Polaroid print the more adhesive that binds this on to its original backing that I retain, and I like the reticulated effect that this gives the new picture."
"Once the picture is finished and It's out of the water, there follows a drying down period, and this can take up to three to four days before it's safe to handle. I leave them on sheet of absorbent paper that gently draw out the moisture through the back of the print: I would never use a roller, because this might damage the image."
So close does he feel to his work that Perno has felt conflicted about selling his originals "I do put a price on them." he says, "and they're a bit expensive, because only one of each exists. I also make a very high-quality flatbed scan from the original, saved at a minimum of 100MB, and then produce limited edition prints from this that I can sell at affordable prices.
"From my 10 x 8in originals I produce prints in three different formats. The first is an edition of 15. 3 x 4ft in size, and these are produced through the archival giclee process by John Scott Graphics, who is probably the best printer in Chicago, on to handmade 365g Museo paper. These are amazing to look at, and they work really well; you don't begin to appreciate the depth of the detail until you see something this size and just walk into it. I also do an edition of 40 at 20 x 24in and an edition of 50 at 11 x 14in. The prices of all my editions are deliberately kept reasonable, because I consider myself to be an emerging artist in this medium. I encourage other photographers to start out that way; you can always raise your prices as the demand for the work increases."
 Updated March 18, 2008 |
