Stephanie Fry Senior Portfolio 2011-2012: Artist Entry #9: Troy Paiva

I have chosen to write about Troy Paiva because the work that he produces is relevant to what I am trying to work towards now. He does a lot of long exposure work at night and really focuses on using the available light to create his stunning images. He does use some of his own hand to paint in some of the details in his images. His work focuses on the urban exploration culture and the exploration and expansion westward.

"Troy Paiva, AKA Lost America, has been shooting full moon and light painted time-exposure night work in abandoned locations and junkyards since 1989. His surrealist and whimsical work examines the evolution and eventual abandonment of the communities, structures and social iconography spawned during America’s 20th century expansion into the deserts and cities of the West--and the modern Urban Exploration culture that finds strange comfort in dancing through its ruins. Troy’s low cost, high impact light painting techniques have been emulated all over the world." - from the artist's site.

"The photography of Troy Paiva treats us to canted visions of a crumbling, post-industrial America — decommissioned military bases, aircraft ‘boneyards’, abandoned desert towns. The scenarios are all shot at night and the work is presented straight out of the camera, mostly untouched by Photoshopping or other post-processing techniques. Troy uses available light, such as moonlight or sodium light (the latter of course plentiful in the modern-day archaeological ruins he haunts), but he also uniquely marks the shots with his light-painting skills (the introduction of hand-held, hand-applied light during the exposure) and the unearthly effects of red, green and blue-gelled strobe flashes. "

"Ballardian » The Light-Painter of Mojave D: An Interview with Troy Paiva."Ballardian. Web. 06 Nov. 2011. .

On what draws him to the places in his pictures...

"The atmosphere. The sense of isolation and loneliness. I love the surreal feeling of wandering through an abandoned subdivision, alone, in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of the night. Your senses become heightened and you feel the weight of time. Not spooky hollywood ghosts, but ghosts none the less. I try to bring all these sensations and emotions forth in my photography."

"Mental_floss Blog » Nighthawks Behind the Lens: Interview with Troy Paiva."Mental_floss Magazine - Where Knowledge Junkies Get Their Fix. Web. 06 Nov. 2011. .