Artist Statement:

My goal as a photographer is to remain open to seeing beyond the obvious. Sight uses a tremendous amount of our mental capacity – so as a way to conserve resources our brain takes shortcuts. All but a small fraction of what we are exposed to every waking hour of every day is ignored and discarded because the bombardment of visual stimulus forces us to block out and ignore that which is not deemed relevant or important to our routine. 'Seeing' - beyond what is necessary to navigate our daily lives - needs to be a conscious act. Photography trains me to 'see', to be aware of my surroundings: to seek out the unique, the accidental juxtapositions, small gestures, everyday abstractions and fleeting moments that would otherwise be ignored and lost forever.

Photography by its very nature takes life out of context. By putting a frame around a scene or object it is giving a directive to the viewer to “look here!” In so doing it is implied that the image has meaning and purpose – that this moment in the continuum of time is worth preserving. At the same time the viewer is given no information as to what is outside the boundaries of the image – a whole world that is to be ignored or imagined. The photographer, by the decisions made in framing, composition, lighting and focus has made those things unknown and unknowable. This conscious act of inclusion and exclusion is essential to the interpretation of the photograph.

Biography

Tim Nighswander's career in photography began in college at Kent State University and has led him from photojournalism and award-winning commercial photography to his current status as a sought-after photographer in the specialized field of photographing fine art. In 2004, after 20 years of being The Albers Foundation's primary photographer, Tim worked with The Josef and Anni Albers Foundation to convert the collection’s archives from film to the latest in digital photography. It became evident that there was a need for a reliable, qualified source that could offer high-resolution photography on location. Seeing an opportunity to help, Tim, along with his wife Diane Nighswander, a veteran business executive in graphic design, communications and marketing, founded IMAGING4ART, which is dedicated solely to working for cultural institutions, foundations, galleries, private collectors and individual artists.

Since the establishment of Imaging4Art in 2008, Tim has photographed comprehensive art collections throughout the U.S. for clients including The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Glenstone Museum, and The Barnes Foundation. Other clients who rely on Tim Nighswander/IMAGING4ART for high-resolution photography include MoMA, the Whitney Museum of American Art, The Willem de Kooning Foundation, The Art Institute of Chicago, David Zwirner, Matthew Marks, Luhring Augustine, and Lévy Gorvy.

As a significant contributor to nearly 100 art books and catalogues, his images have been widely viewed by the general public and the global art world. In his work, Tim is given unprecedented behind-the-scenes access to paintings, drawings, photographs and sculpture by many of the world's greatest artists – from Leonardo da Vinci to Yayoi Kusama - working beside some of the world’s most highly-regarded curators, art historians, conservators and collectors.

Exposure to this art and body of knowledge has given Tim great understanding of themes and through-lines that have been a consistent part of his personal imagery. Recently this has coalesced into new avenues to explore, which is why, as a photographer who has dedicated his career to showcasing the work of other artists in the light they deserve, Tim has decided to share his personal photography with the public.