Fine Art Photographer
Handcolored black & white photographs, image & emulsion transfers, limited edition prints, plus note cards & magnets
Contact Information:
Dinah Satterwhite PhotoImageArt Bainbridge Island, WA 206-855-9002
Personal Website DinahSatterwhite.com
Artist Statement:
Photographer Dinah Satterwhite was always pushing the artistic limits when it came to art and photography in school. As early as 1975, she decided to make up her own colors for a painting class, and even created her own imaginative names for them. In college she took a few photography classes and experimented with macro work, incorporating the results into multi-media productions. Ms. Satterwhite has always felt driven to be a bit different from the crowd, and enjoys pushing her own photography to new places. After pursuing a career in marketing, advertising and hi-tech for many years, she returned to focus more fully on her photography. In 1998 she researched the art of handcoloring black & white photos, and fell in love at first sight. She states that "this medium redefines the art of photography, exploiting the dynamics of black and white film while allowing me the artistic freedom to recreate the image." Working with black & white and infrared films, she uses her creative vision to compose and capture the subtlety of many subjects, and then enhances them with a variety of handcoloring techniques. Ms. Satterwhite feels that her "eye" is the most important element in her work, and her technical abilities just back it up. She likes high contrast images, and often changes the film, filters, or angle of a shot to pick up a single element or texture. Other techniques that Ms. Satterwhite has mastered include the manipulation of 669 Polaroid film into lovely Image and Emulsion Transfers. "The classic weathered look of an Image Transfer really appeals to me, and the characteristic rough edges give the photos a wonderful vintage look. The Emulsion Transfers provide a medium for the wrinkling, tearing, and layering of the original Polaroid while working underwater, and the result is a dynamic range of creative combinations."
Another technique that she uses requires Polaroid Time Zero film. These SX-70 Manipulations involve literally pushing around the layers of film as they cure on the print, creating a swirling or warbled abstract of the original. Each of these processes require additional technical abilities, with a lot of room for creativity. She often works in a studio in her waterfront home on Bainbridge Island, complete with a very artistic garden and inspiring view of the harbor and Seattle skyline. Dinah Satterwhite's images offer a beautiful vantage point of scenic landscapes, and she enjoys photographing architecture, florals, and classic cars. And her tinted images deliver the dream combination of a crisp photograph combined with glorious handcolored effects that set her apart from other photographers.
Favorite Quote: "Discovery consists in seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought." Albert Szent-Gyorgyi
