Catherine Gillo

Originally trained as a textile designer, Catherine’s image making is led by form and colour but it is the sense of atmosphere - the essence of an event, place or person that she strives to make tangible to the viewer – often through a detail that may allude to the bigger picture.

Her work encompasses aspects of performance, from the Chinese State Circus to a recent commission documenting the Leeds West Indian Carnival 35th year celebration, to reportage work, particularly through travel – most notably Trinidad.

Catherine’s work includes a series of photographs of the Chinese Red Shoes; the first part is suspended in the dark, cascading downwards from woven binding, and appears so playful, so light and delicate compared to the second part, where the image is brimming with contrasts. The bright light plays upon the ribbon and throws out a variety of muted and dark shadows. The background is solid, so dark that one wonders whether the binding and shoe are resting, having just reached their destination, or if they are still falling?

The Dried Tulip has demonstrated Catherine’s ability to create light and shadow on the object in the foreground against solid black. The camera as a tool surpasses the obvious and is used somehow magically, yet utilising a simple technique.

Catherine’s work is semantic; concealing our cultural and social engagement and our thought, the end result of this social product demands a prolonged contemplation.