Cullen Austin Irby
Outer Banks
2022
This body of work explores memory, self and different emotions throughout life. “Outer Banks” connects abstract self-portraits to where I grew up in coastal North Carolina. I am pushing beyond landscape photography by creating a series of near abstract images encased in encaustic. By using my body as a landscape, these abstract contortions of the body correlate to the islands around the beach, family, sickness, vulnerability, loss, failure, sexual assault and to my growth as an artist. The use of the encaustic process within my photography is to connect the viewer to the body through its skin-like texture and timeless feel. Applying wax is a preservative, just as life is preservative.
Bio:
Cullen Austin Irby grew up on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. He is the son of Katherine and Jeffrey Irby, brother of Chance Irby, and husband of Marly Carmona. A transfer from North Carolina, began photographing landscapes in 2014. He has lived in many places around the country and has traveled the world photographing landscapes. At Mississippi State University, he explored photographic processes that connect self-embodiment, landscape and the journey of life through his own experiences. Austin intends to pursue an MFA in Photography in hopes of becoming a professor in higher education.
