ethan murphy

front & back

Front & Back explores the relationship between image and object through the reactivation of a decaying family album, initially found in the basement of my childhood home. While searching for objects that belonged to my late father, I discovered clusters of 4x6 inch prints that were wet and stuck together in block formations. The images on the surface were largely destroyed, with the exception of some image fragments. Even these fragments were barely legible and so have become abstractions of the indexical image they once were.

Personal loss has made me reconsider the value of this damaged archive as a precious entity, allowing me to encounter the image of a deceased loved one contained within a decaying object. Front & Back examines the materiality of memory and deconstruction of images while questioning the relationship between image and loss. 

Washing Prints, 2019

Mom Fading on Bell Island, 2020

Dad Smiling on Dad's House, 2019

Back #2

Back#5

Back#11

Ethan Murphy: Front & Back (installation view), 2020 © Larissa Issler, Ryerson Image Centre

Ethan Murphy: Front & Back (installation view), 2020 © Larissa Issler, Ryerson Image Centre

Ethan Murphy: Front & Back (installation view), 2020 © Larissa Issler, Ryerson Image Centre

Ethan Murphy: Front & Back (installation view), 2020 © Larissa Issler, Ryerson Image Centre

Ethan Murphy: Front & Back (installation view), 2020 © Larissa Issler, Ryerson Image Centre

Ethan Murphy: Front & Back (installation view), 2020 © Larissa Issler, Ryerson Image Centre

Front & Back explores the relationship between image and object through the reactivation of a decaying family album, initially found in the basement of my childhood home. While searching for objects that belonged to my late father, I discovered clusters of 4x6 inch prints that were wet and stuck together in block formations. The images on the surface were largely destroyed, with the exception of some image fragments. Even these fragments were barely legible and so have become abstractions of the indexical image they once were.

Personal loss has made me reconsider the value of this damaged archive as a precious entity, allowing me to encounter the image of a deceased loved one contained within a decaying object. Front & Back examines the materiality of memory and deconstruction of images while questioning the relationship between image and loss. 

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