Each of these images is a small meditation. The objects depicted might not be thought to be worth a second look, but upon further inspection they can be quite beautiful. The small size of the Polaroid prints requires the viewer to look closely.

After a year away, I returned to the urban Northeast where I grew up and have lived most of my life. During the COVID pandemic, I began focusing on things in my much smaller world. I was struck by the details and textures of the objects around me. All of these images focus on an object or small group of objects closely—things that resonate with the gritty, but vital and beautiful qualities of my intensely urban environment.

Each photograph was shot with a restored vintage Polaroid SX-70 camera. The prints are far from perfect. They are subject to the vagaries of the complex Polaroid instant exposure and development process—and thus reveal their imperfect analog nature very clearly. They are also unique physical objects. These pictures have many of the same qualities as the objects they depict.