Katina Desmond is both a painter and a photographer. Her work often combines these two mediums. Before color photography existed, painting or “hand-tinting” black and white photographs with oils was a traditional technique used to simulate realistic color. Moving beyond the traditional form of hand-tinting, Katina’s imagery is not intended to resemble reality, but rather to reveal a new perception of the captured moment. Each image is an original oil painting. At its base is an original black and white silver gelatin photograph, created using film, a single lens reflex camera, and developed in the darkroom using traditional archival techniques.
I am inspired by the spirit of nature and I focus on its emotive qualities. My intent is to reveal multi layered dimension: illusory, surreal and hyperreal.