Andrea Jarvis Hamilton (born in 1968) is aconceptual artist andfine-art photographer best known for her extensive series of photographic images of the ocean, natural phenomena[1] and the Kelvin scale. Her work encompasses the long term, systematic collection of subjects within a strict conceptual framework, creating expansive archives. These are retrospectively organised according to common visual characteristics (movement, colour,[2] light) into series which highlight certain themes: the nature of time and memory, climate change, colour theory and being. Her work also encompasses still life, long exposure, landscape and portraiture,[3]street photography[4] and landscape.[5]
Hamilton has been short-listed for several notable photography prizes including the 7th Julia Margaret Cameron Award for Women Photographers,[6] Chantel Paul’s Honorable Mention at The Centre for Fine Art Photography[7] inColorado, the 9th Arte Laguna Prize[8] and the Judges Choice at the AOP Open Awards 2013.[9]
Hamilton was born in Peru but by her teens had lived in Mexico City, Minneapolis and London. She studied law at university before joiningS.G. Warburg as an Equity Analyst in Latin American Mining. After leaving to have a family, Hamilton did not return to business, but studied photography at Photofusion and traditional print methods at the Black and White School.[10] As well as working as an artist, Hamilton also runs AHStudio, an art space based inBelgravia which was established in 2014.
Hamilton works across multiple photographic genres including fine art, landscape, urban photography and street photography. Her 2019 showChroma revealed her interest in typology and archiving: "Hamilton’s new pieces are from an extraordinary and expansive photographic catalogue of seascapes called Seachroma: water and sky observed and shot in natural light over a 20-year period[11]".
Hamilton's works frequently examine the durational capacity of photography which implies the contingency of both past and future as related inRoland Barthes’ notion of time. On one hand, Hamilton detains the landscape in a sort of infinite present that transforms the image into a haiku poem, as it occurs in her seriesTidal Resonance, shown at Delahunty in 2014.[12] On the other hand, her portraits remind the audience that posing in front of the camera references the future, emphasising the timelessness and dignity of her subjects, as seen in her surreal portraits of children inWondrous Strange.[13]
Hamilton also employs photography to create images that bring out the emotional potential of an environment, achieving images that are both personal and universal. Her street photography is driven by "the prospect of witnessing something special and spontaneous", as evidenced in herLondon Every Day series in which a daily snapshot of London shows the changing seasons.[14] Her street photography is notable for its acute sensitivity to and understanding of natural light, and its ability to morph the ordinary into something strange and sometimes otherworldly.
Hamilton has published three books of photographs. Her first,AH20,[5] published in 2014, collects together the works created under the seriesTidal Resonance andLuminous Icescapes, and includes an introduction by Rabih Hage and essays by Anthony Downey and Ben Eastham.
In 2015 she was one of the photographers commissioned to photograph London's creative scene for the bookLondon Burning: Portraits from a Creative City.[3] The book includes interviews and photographs of various creative personalities includingEdmund de Waal,Tamara Rojo,Hans-Ulrich Obrist andMatthew Slotover.[15][16]
The bookLondon Every Day includesstreet photography and looks at the beauty and creativity of regular life and was commissioned by The Mayor’s Fund for London.[14]London Every Day includes an introduction by Charlotte Cotton, plus images choices and contributions fromDavid Adjaye,John Frieda,Anish Kapoor,Sir Elton John,Mary McCartney,Martin Sorrell andCharlize Theron among others.
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