Robert Moran

This isn’t just a simple series about things. Stuff. Relics is a beautiful look at who we are, who we were. It is a document about creativity, ingenuity and the power we hold inside us to create. These objects, while discarded now, once had prominence in someone’s life, sparking the creativity of someone else to expand, grow and develop the next generation. These images, these objects all span generations, ghosts and memories to not only where we came from, but open the possibilities of where we will go. Robert Moran’s simplicity in focusing on the beauty of the object, with lighting and warmth allows us to add our memories, dreams and stories adding new meaning to each of these once precious objects.

Fred’s Bag

Free at Last

RELICS

RELICS is a series of portraits of common objects that are past their prime. Once relied upon, they have been forgotten or discarded. I photographed each item singly in order to reveal its individual essence. Cracks and scuff of hard use. Mended hinges. Patches worn smooth by frequent polishing. Looking at each piece through my camera lens, I am reminded how often function dictates form, and how frequently the form is right.

The objects in these photographs may have been used for years by one person, while others passed through many hands. They’ve been used in homes, offices, a school gym, and taken on house calls by a country doctor. All of them have stories. Selecting and photographing them, I began to think about the events in my life to which objects have borne witness. In a sense they are our partners in life.

Over the years I have taken pictures of neighbors, classic cars, icebergs, and now, … a table fan. Each time, I strive to capture something of my subject’s essential spirit. In this project I’ve tried to achieve that by selecting items that display a unique aura – and in many cases, reveal wear and tear obtained from many years of use.

-Robert Moran

“… In his exhibition called Relics, Robert Moran photographs cultural artifacts. The Lava Lamp, the pink Westinghouse radio, the birdcage and a travel-worn valise become works of art that are no longer savored for their function. They have outlived their use but remain behind as evidence of our human trajectory. Moran, as archeologist, etches these remnants of a bygone day into our social memory so they cannot be forgotten.”

PAULA TOGNARELLI

Executive Director and Curator Griffin museum of Photography

Pink Radio

About Robert

Robert Moran is a fine art photographer living on Mount Desert Island off the coast of Maine. After studying art at the University of Maine, Robert started and ran several businesses over the course of twenty years. During that time he found the time to study photography as well as pursue personal work on his trips to Africa, Asia, and the South Pacific. Robert’s most recent projects have taken him to Cuba and Antarctica.

Robert’s work has been shown in galleries and museums across the U.S. His photographs are in private collections in the united States as well as Australia and several European countries. His award winning photographs have been published in The Photo review, Shots Magazine, and several issues of B&W + Color Magazine.